Beneath the Mansion
by kelleyj17
Summary: Nibelheim lies in ashes. Deep below the Shinra manor, Cloud and Zack awake in a sea of green. Cut off from family and friends, the boys have only each other to get through the nightmare ahead. Shinra's deepest, darkest secrets are about to be discovered, and the two friends will never be the same again.
1. Prologue

**Summary:** Nibelheim lies in ashes. Deep below the Shinra manor, Cloud and Zack awake in a sea of green. Cut off from family and friends, the boys have only each other to get through the nightmare ahead. Shinra's deepest, darkest secrets are about to be discovered, and the two friends will never be the same again.

 **Relationships:** Peripherally Zack/Aerith and Cloti, but the girls won't be there, so only in memories.

 **Warnings:** Graphic violence and adult themes. I will post any trigger warnings on individual chapters.

 **A/N:** This is a dark subject, so this won't be pretty, but hopefully it will be worth the ride. Your thoughts and feedback will likely influence the direction of the story, so please let me know what you think along the way. Con-crit is always welcome!

 **Prologue**

 **He keeps them in cages like rats. Why wouldn't he? That's what they are to him, I suppose.**

 **We're supposed to call them cells, but a prison cell would be a first class upgrade compared to these. Trust me. I've spent enough time in them to know.**

 **Their cages have a 'bed' bolted to the cement wall at the back. The base is nothing more than a large cement slab, and a thin, stiff mattress that sits on top. It's the plastic kind used for children who wet the bed, and it looks only marginally softer than the cement base. Maybe at one time there had been sheets to go with them, but I imagine they were too much effort to wash. The specimens tend to spill a lot of bodily fluids on them.**

 **In the corner is a hole dug into the ground for a toilet. There is a roll of toilet paper on the floor – an amenity I would not have expected from Professor Hojo. There is also a small pump for water, but it's not the kind of water anyone but a dying man would drink. It can be used for washing, but it's ice cold and the cell block is already kept around 60 degrees Fahrenheit, so they rarely touch it anyway. The professor likes to have absolute power over his specimens.**

 **The only thing that might show a touch of compassion is the fact that he put the specimens in cells right next to each other. They are leaning against the bars of their cells, shoulder-to-shoulder except for the cold steel sandwiched between them. That cement floor can't be comfortable, but they sit in that position for hours whenever they're both left to their own devices in their adjacent cages.**

 **The cages don't have classic vertical bars. They're crisscrossed, like a chain link fence, only made from thick steel. The spaces between the bars are just large enough to stick a finger through, and the blond one has all 10 of his stuck in them. The dark one has his fingers linked with the pale fingers sticking into his cells. They draw comfort from each other, and I thought it strange that the professor would allow this. It's probably just an oversight on his part. He never has understood the human connection.**

* * *

 **I listen in on their conversations often. It is my job to observe them, after all. I am only reminded of their names through their dialogue with each other, because Hojo refuses to acknowledge anything except their numbers anymore.**

 **The blond one is called Cloud. He is not quite as young as I thought; he's 16 now, but he has a baby face and he's scared out of his mind. The dark-haired one is called Zack. When he talks to Cloud, he doesn't show the least bit of fear.**

 **But I am the watcher. I see everything.**

 **When Cloud falls into a restless sleep on the cement floor, when Zack thinks he is alone, he is different. His eyes, blue so dark that it looks purple, tell stories. I look closer into his beautiful eyes, and I see.**

 **He is terrified.**

 **Maybe more frightened than Cloud, or maybe it only seems so it because Cloud doesn't fight against his fear. He doesn't hide it. He doesn't pretend. But Zack only has these few hours of the night to stop pretending, and the terror only has this time to be set free. His pupils dilate. His breathing speeds up. His body temperature rises. He rocks back and forth, although he never loses his contact with Cloud's fingers.**

 **I don't think he can.**

 **He might go crazy.**

* * *

 **I remember the day they were brought in.**

 **I watched as the orderlies entered the operating room pushing gurneys with two very bloody men. One had brilliant red hair, the other raven black. The orderlies hefted the bodies onto the cold metal tables. They engaged the leather straps around their ankles and wrists - serious overkill since neither of those boys were going to be putting up a fight anytime soon.**

 **Once the specimens were prepared, Hojo dismissed the orderlies and proceeded to completely ignore the bodies on the tables. He sat down at the desk against the far wall, flipped through papers and forms and scribbled on them with a pen, muttering to himself. Dr. Hyde entered several minutes later with his assistant, a young lab tech named Kyle.**

 **"About time, Hyde," Hojo snapped.**

 **Hyde simply raised an eyebrow at the professor. He seemed to be the only one immune to Hojo's temper. He didn't bother to make an excuse or apologize. He just snapped on a pair of thin rubber gloves and pulled down the spray nozzle above the redheaded man's table. Whoever he was, he ought to be glad he wasn't awake for this. That spray was powerful and freezing cold. It was like being hosed down by a fireman.**

 **Kyle began unlacing and removing the man's boots, and then started cutting off his clothes. It was a trooper's uniform. I wondered what the poor sap had done to make himself the professor's next victim.**

 **Dr. Hyde turned on the high powered spray and began rinsing the blood from the body. He started at the feet and worked his way up the legs. Much of it had soaked through his uniform from the outside, as if he'd been lying in a puddle of it. As the blood washed down the gutters on both sides of the table, a young man with a slight build and pale skin was revealed.**

 **"This is a pretty average looking specimen, Hojo," Dr. Hyde said with a frown. "Why is he separated from the others?"**

 **Professor Hojo stopped writing on his clipboard and looked down at the body. "Yes. I may discard him later, but there's something I need to learn from him first."**

 **Hyde turned down the pressure when he reached the specimen's chest. Thick bandages had been sloppily applied, and I cringed when he peeled them back. He had a long gash across his chest, stretching from collarbone to ribs. It had been stitched up, but it was poorly done. Dr. Hyde would probably want to redo those. He couldn't stand that kind of sloppiness.**

 **The doctor rolled him onto his side to take a look at his back. There was an identical line of sloppy stitches back there. It looked like the poor guy had been stabbed all the way through. How was he even still alive?**

 **Hyde finished rinsing the wound and moved up to the man's head. As the water surged over his face, I realized that he wasn't a redhead after all. He had very pale blond hair, and it had just been saturated with that much blood. The specimen was barely more than a boy, I thought maybe in his early- to mid- teens.**

 **Hyde finished examining the body and then turned to Hojo. "If you want this one to survive, you'll want to give him a liter of blood before you throw him in the tank."**

 **Hojo grunted. "Fine. I want him kept alive for now. Go take care of it, Kirk."**

 **Kyle nodded and left the room to carry out his orders. Even though his name was clearly visible on his ID badge, he wasn't stupid enough to correct Hojo.**

 **Professor Hojo and Dr. Hyde moved over to the other table. Hyde started unlacing and pulling off the specimen's boots himself. Hojo looked disgusted, but that's one of the things I like about Hyde. He does what needs to be done. Even when Kyle returned, Hyde had him hook up the IV line for the blond kid and continued working on the other guy.**

 **That was the first time I noticed that this one was wearing a SOLDIER uniform. A First Class SOLDIER uniform even. Man, this guy must have really messed up for Shinra to allow Hojo to take him. Those guys were the elites. Shinra put a ton of time and money into them, and he was as good as dead now. I guessed that meant that Shinra wanted him dead. Hojo was just a convenient means of disposal.**

 **This guy had a slash across his chest too, but he didn't look nearly as rough as the blond kid. He was definitely built like a SOLDIER, all hard planes and defined muscle.**

 **"Ah, now this is a fine specimen," Hyde said in admiration.**

 **"Yes, he'll do nicely," Hojo said. "If there's anyone left on this planet who could get close to Sephiroth's perfection, it will be him."**

 **Perfection indeed. He was beautiful.**


	2. Awakening

**Chapter 1: Awakening**

[6 months earlier]

The world was a sea of green. Zack could make out rounded corners and fuzzy shapes, all with a peculiar greenish tint. Feeling filtered back in to his awareness as he realized he was in some kind of liquid. His training kicked in, and he controlled the adrenaline that wanted to throw his body into a panic.

 _Focus. Assess the situation. Then act decisively._

As he assessed the situation, however, the panic only increased. He couldn't act decisively because he couldn't _move_. He couldn't breathe. He was going to suffocate.

The heart rate monitor above Zack's mako tank began beeping rapidly, alerting Kyle to the fact that the specimen had awakened. He set down the pen he'd been using and pressed an intercom button on the wall.

"Hey, the dark one woke up. Send one of the orderlies with a gurney."

Kyle strolled over to the monitor and pressed a button, silencing the beeping. "Ok, buddy, just relax for a minute. I'm gonna get you out of there."

Zack forced himself to calm down slightly and reassess. He couldn't breathe, but he also didn't feel the _need_ to breathe. He was upright in the liquid, not quite floating, but he wasn't leaning against the glass, either. Air bubbles streamed in front of his eyes, somehow keeping him suspended.

Kyle pressed a sequence of buttons in a sliding panel on the side of the tank. There was a hissing sound and the fluid began to swirl down the drain at Zack's feet. Kyle stood watching calmly. A large woman in a blue orderly uniform entered the room, pushing a noisy gurney.

Kyle nodded a greeting to her. "Yo, Wendy. He's done cooking. You ready for him?"

"Yep. Open her up," Wendy said.

The liquid had completely drained, but Zack was still frozen in his position. Kyle pressed a few more buttons and the door slid open. Instantly, his muscles softened. He fell forward as he gasped for air, and his body was easily caught by the woman in the blue scrubs.

The woman had badly dyed blonde hair, dark eyebrows, and was built like a linebacker. Zack was no lightweight, but she slung him on that gurney with little effort.

Zack tried to sit up and was promptly pushed back down by the burly woman. "Chill out, buddy," she said dully. "I'm just gonna take you to medical."

She kept her hand pressed on his chest as she pushed the gurney through the doorway and into a cold cement hallway. Zack didn't try to sit up again, but questions were flying in his head and tumbled out of his mouth in a rush. "Where am I? What am I doing here? What was in that tank back there?"

Wendy sighed heavily, as if unbearably burdened by his voice. "The doctor will answer all your questions after he looks you over, ok?"

The gurney clattered loudly as it rolled along the cement. It had one wobbly wheel, which shimmied horribly and squeaked every now and then. It added to the realism of the place. Zack concentrated on those sounds and the rough texture of the walls and ceiling, forcing his heart to slow down. The air moving over his wet skin chilled him, and he realized he was wearing some kind of hospital gown. It was soaked with whatever strange fluid had been in that tank.

The gurney stopped and he heard a quick _blip-blip,_ and then he was pulled through another doorway. The walls and ceiling of this room were white plaster. This looked more like the civilization he was used to, and he relaxed another degree. He protested as Wendy picked him up and hefted him onto a much softer bed, this one with actual sheets and pillows.

"Wha-hey! I can do that myself, you know."

Wendy ignored his exclamation. "Sit up."

Zack pushed himself to a sitting position. He felt a little weak, but not terrible. Wendy yanked the string holding his wet gown together, untying the bow at his back. She pulled it forward over his shoulders, making no effort to be gentle.

"Damn, lady, I usually require at least dinner and a glass of wine before I give access to the goods." Zack flashed her his most charming smile, but Wendy just rolled her eyes.

"The doctor will be in shortly," she said drolly, tossing his wet gown into a bin in the corner. There was another _blip-blip_ sound, and Wendy walked out the door.

"Wow, bedside manner, much?" Zack muttered. He was a little perturbed that she was so unaffected by him. He tried not to be too conceited, but he was well aware of the effect he usually had on women. And that woman was looking at some prime, naked SOLDIER ass and didn't even take a second glance.

He reached up to adjust his pillow, noticing then that the skin on his upper arms felt a little stiff. He turned an arm to examine the outside of his bicep.

"What the _fuck_?"

A one-inch-wide, three-inch-long strip was sewn into the skin of his arm between his shoulder and elbow. It looked almost metallic, but it was flexible, covered with a tightly woven grid. He sat up to look at the rest of his body. An identical strip was on the other arm, and similar but larger strips adorned the outsides of both legs.

He pulled at the edge of the strip on his right leg. The stitches held tight, and he didn't want to just rip it out without knowing what it was there for. He sighed and laid back on the bed, tucking his arms behind his head. He crossed his ankles and posed, hoping that when the doctor came, it would be a woman. His ego was in serious danger after that flatline with Wendy, and he needed to make sure he hadn't lost his mojo.

 _Blip-blip._

The door clicked open and a short, balding man in a white lab coat entered. He wore narrow rectangular glasses, so tiny that they had to be more for show than actual need. He took one look at Zack posing naked on the bed and gave a knowing smirk, understanding exactly what his patient had been attempting and had failed so spectacularly. Turning to open a cupboard behind the door, he pulled out a dry gown and tossed it to Zack.

"Uh, thanks," Zack said as he caught the gown. He was actually getting a little chilled, and the gown was a welcome accommodation, since there was obviously no female he could tempt into ogling him. "Your blue scrub lady just yanked off the wet one and left me sitting here naked."

The man gave him an apologetic smile as he approached. "I'm sorry. Wendy lacks a certain…warmth sometimes."

"That's an understatement," Zack muttered as he tied the gown behind his back. He sat at the edge of the bed, resting his feet on the cold floor.

The man in the white coat held out his hand. "My name is Dr. Hyde. I will be seeing to your recovery."

"Zack Fair," Zack replied, shaking his hand. He reached his arms up over his head and stretched, releasing some of the stiffness in his joints. He looked around the room curiously. "This doesn't look like Shinra HQ. Where am I? And what are these—" he poked at the strip on one of his arms, "—things stuck all over me?" They bothered him a bit, although he was used to weird additions courtesy of Shinra.

"Of course," the doctor said calmly as he pulled a tray of instruments from a cupboard above Zack's bed. The balding man strapped a blood pressure cuff onto his arm and pressed the automatic measurement button on the machine. Amazingly, the strip didn't seem to hinder the measurement of his blood pressure at all. It flexed and moved with his skin. "You are at a special facility on the western continent," Dr. Hyde explained. "The first phase of the treatment was that tank in which you awoke."

"Yeah, about that," Zack glowered. "I would have appreciated a warning. Do you know how freaky it is to wake up when you can't move or breathe?" He gave the doctor a vaguely annoyed look. "Besides, don't you need our consent for experimental treatments like that?"

Dr. Hyde looked unconcerned. "We certainly would have informed you beforehand, if that were possible, Zack. But you were wounded to an extent that rendered you incapable of understanding anything we would have told you." He gave a smug smile. "Regardless, you have already given your consent to any and all procedures as part of your contract with Shinra."

Zack blinked. He probably should have actually read that thing before he signed it.

"I need to listen to your lungs, Zack." Dr. Hyde touched a cold stethoscope to his back. "Take a deep breath." Zack took a long, deep breath and let it out. The doctor moved the stethoscope to a different place. "Again." Zack took another deep breath. The cold metal moved over another spot. "One more."

Satisfied, the doctor hung the stethoscope around his neck and reappeared in front of him. "Lie back."

Zack settled back on the bed. "So what's the deal with these flexi-things on my arms?"

"Those are special filters for the mako infusion chambers."

"The what now? Why don't they just give us mako the old fashioned way?" He'd received all of his treatments in SOLDIER through a needle.

"The mako infusion chambers are different." Dr. Hyde pressed on his abdomen as he spoke. "The fluid allows a much faster absorption of the mako. It is a proprietary blend that provides several things: oxygen, mako, and the muscle-locking solution, along with a few other nutrients." He paused. "Think of the filters like a fish's gills, pulling the nutrients from the fluid and passing them directly to the bloodstream."

"Yeah, ok, fascinating," Zack said distractedly. He wasn't really interested in the science behind it. "But why did you need to lock up my muscles anyway? It's really not cool to wake up like that."

"Partially to keep you immobile so that you don't flail around and harm yourselves when you awake, but also to freeze the muscles that control breathing. It prevents you from aspirating the solution. You may sit up now."

Zack sat up. "Just for future reference," he grumbled, "I'd much rather have a nose plug and a mouth guard."

"Duly noted," the doctor said absently.

The assault of new information to his senses had finally slowed, and Zack was gradually becoming aware of empty spaces in his memories. No, not so much empty as _blurry_. He scratched his head. "How did I get here, anyway? I can't even remember what mission I was on." He threw a sharp look at the doctor. "Where's my sword?" He was just beginning to realize how naked he felt without his weapon, and the Buster sword was the part of Angeal he swore to always carry with him.

The blood pressure machine beeped, indicating that it was done with his measurements. Dr. Hyde removed the cuff. "Don't worry, your sword will be kept safe for you." He picked up a tourniquet and tied it around the same arm, then picked up an empty syringe. "I'm just going to get some blood for the lab."

Zack couldn't have cared less what the doctor was doing to his body. The memories were starting to come back, piece by piece, clarifying like ripples in water.

 _Nibelheim._

 _The reactor._

 _The mansion._

 _Fire._

 _Sephiroth._

 _Sephiroth!_

 _Cloud…face down on the metal stairs, the stream of blood trailing behind him like a grotesque water slide. Tifa…lying like a discarded doll at the base of the stairs._

"Oh. Oh Gaia," Zack whispered. He felt like his heart was being squeezed in his chest. He surged to his feet, completely unaware of the doctor stumbling backwards, or the most recent vial of blood shattering on the floor. His head buzzed with static. His arms and legs were getting numb. "Am I the only one?"

Blackness closed in around his vision, and he collapsed to the floor.

* * *

Zack snuggled into his pillow, reluctant to leave the warmth of a soft bed. He didn't want to open his eyes yet. He was chasing the tail of an elusive dream, and it was slipping through his fingers like sand. He only knew that Cloud was there. He heard his voice, calling out to him, but no matter where he looked, no matter where he followed the sound of his voice, it was always just out of his grasp.

"Zack? Zack. Open your eyes if you can hear me, Zack."

The intrusion of an incredibly bright light chased the last vestiges of sleep from his mind. Zack opened his eyes blearily to a bright penlight in his face. He turned his head and pushed the light away. "Do you have to do that, doc? That thing is really annoying."

Dr. Hyde clicked the button on the back of the pen and the light disappeared. "Sorry, Zack, just testing your responses to—"

"Yeah, I got it," Zack said irritably. "But I'm awake and talking, aren't I?"

Dr. Hyde looked annoyed to be questioned, but he tucked away the light. "Alright, but I need to do a full neurological exam. You fainted, Zackary, and after your injury there's a possibility of damage to your parietal lobe…"

His voice faded into a background drone. Zack had the feeling that the doctor was only subjecting him to the extensive exam because he had complained about the light anyway. He numbly went through the motions, pointing and touching and moving in response to Hyde's instructions. In his mind, he was flipping through a kaleidoscope of pictures, wondering if he would ever see any of those people again.

When he had finished the exam, Dr. Hyde stood back and looked at him. "Is everything ok, Zack? You seem withdrawn."

"Hm? Oh. No, I was just thinking…was anybody else brought in with me? Was I the only one who survived in Nibelheim?"

"Well, I'm really not privy to military operations, but you're my only patient at the moment," Dr. Hyde said.

"Oh."

 _So they're all gone. Cloud, Tifa, Sephiroth, and all of Nibelheim. That means I'm the only one who knows what happened there._

Dr. Hyde was packing away his tools in the overhead cupboards. He seemed to sense that Zack needed some space, though, because he shoved in the remaining items haphazardly. He walked toward the door, but hesitated as he gripped the handle. "Zack…I'm sure they're…" he trailed off, undoubtedly realizing that he could be sure of nothing. He bowed his head. "Lunch will be brought in for you shortly," he said as he left the room.

Zack slid back down on the bed. It didn't make any sense. The Shinra forces couldn't have completely collapsed with the loss of Sephiroth. Why wouldn't they be there debriefing one of their only remaining First Classes? He felt a brief flicker of hope. Maybe he _wasn't_ the only one who had survived. Maybe Cloud was just fine. Zack's imagination protested, bringing up the image of the thick stream of blood trailing down the stairs.

He forcefully pushed the image away. Hadn't Cloud proven, time and again, that he was capable of so much more than anyone expected? He had stopped the most dangerous madman the world had ever known. As far as Zack was concerned, it was proof that he was fit for SOLDIER. He had saved countless innocents who could have been cut down by Sephiroth, and Shinra's reputation along the way. He should have been hailed as a hero.

But…they were all about politics there.

Zack's stomach sank. If Cloud had been the only one left alive, would they believe the word of an infantry soldier? Would they honestly think that Cloud alone would have been able to stop the general? Could they accept that an unenhanced grunt had taken down their perfect SOLDIER?

No. They didn't know Cloud the way he did. They wouldn't see past the baby face and the wide blue eyes. They couldn't see the steel inside.

On top of that, Sephiroth had left behind a sizable slice of destruction before he'd been stopped. Shinra wouldn't want to lose face with the public. They might just use Cloud as a scapegoat to hide the fact that their brilliant, highly publicized general had gone mad and torched a village. Either way, he couldn't see any kind of favorable outcome for his friend.

Zack sat up. He had to know for sure. If Cloud was alive, there was no telling what Shinra could be putting him through. If Cloud was alive, it was up to Zack to set the record straight. And if he was dead….well, at least he would know.

He swung his feet off the side of the bed and touched them to the cold floor. He stood up slowly, which was showing a lot of restraint for someone like Zack. When the world didn't tilt, he ran for the door and pulled on the handle. It didn't budge.

 _What? Locked?_

Zack took a step back and looked more closely at the door. There were no visible locks or obvious card readers. How were people getting in and out? And why would they lock him in?

 _Blip-blip._ The familiar beeping sounded from the other side, and a young man in blue scrubs pushed the door open.

"Whoa! What are you doing out of bed?" he asked, looking startled. "You're not supposed to be wandering around."

Zack tried to push past him. "Yeah, whatever. I need to talk to Director Lazard."

The orderly squeezed in the room and shut the door behind him, blocking the door with his body. "Ok, I'll check with the professor and see what I can do. But you need to get back into the bed. It's too soon after the mako tank to be running around."

Zack hesitated. He wasn't one for waiting on someone else to do something. He wanted _results_.

"Seriously, man," the orderly said. "You can't do anything right now, anyway. The professor won't be in until tomorrow morning, and I can't do anything without his go-ahead."

Finally, Zack sighed and trudged back to the bed. "Can't you call him? Where is my phone, anyway?"

 _Blip-blip._ The man re-opened the door and pulled in the cart he'd abandoned when Zack had surprised him.

 _Aw, damn it!_ Zack mentally cursed himself. He had turned his back right when the guy was doing his secret handshake or whatever to unlock the door.

"It's safe with your other stuff. Don't worry about it." He rolled the tray over to the bed and swung it around so that the food was over Zack's lap. Reaching down to the side of the bed, he pressed a button on the side to raise the head.

Zack scowled and looked up at the orderly. His hair was dyed an interesting shade of orange, and he had marks that suggested a lot of piercings on his face, although there weren't any in at the moment. He had an identification badge pinned to his shirt with his picture and the name 'Jaxson.'

"Look, Jaxson—"

"Jax," he interrupted.

"What?"

"Call me Jax," the orderly said. He smiled, displaying a row of uneven teeth. The smile was genuine, and Zack thought he might have an ally if he played his cards right.

"Ok, Jax," Zack said, giving his most charming grin. "I need a favor from you. I need to find out what happened to a friend that was with me during my last mission. I'm afraid that if I wasn't there to explain how everything went down, he might be getting into trouble. Do you think maybe you could find a way to reach Director Lazard, _today_ , and tell him that I need to speak with him urgently? I know it's asking a lot, but I would really appreciate it."

The smile slipped from the orderly's face. "I really don't have access to the director. I mean, he's way up there on the totem pole. I'm just an orderly. Practically an indentured servant."

A rare look of irritation passed over Zack's features. "You know, Jax, I'm not sure I believe you. How do I know this place is even _owned_ by Shinra? No one came to debrief me, I'm locked in this room, and I can't talk to anyone in authority. How do I know you're not with some rival and you're using me as a hostage? This is—"

"Ok, alright, settle down, man," Jax said with an easy smile. He laid a comforting hand on Zack's shoulder. "I get it. You're in a strange hospital and freaked out. I'll see what I can do about getting you some answers, ok? In the meantime, it's my job to make sure you eat some real food and stay calm. So how about this: I'll go make some phone calls, and you eat this delicious hospital cuisine." He gave him a playfully stern look. "This food better be gone by the time I get back, or I'm not telling you shit. Deal?"

Zack relaxed against his pillows. "Ok. Fine. But hurry up, ok?"

He watched closely as Jax exited the room. The familiar _blip-blip_ sounded, but Jax didn't seem to do anything with the name badge that Zack had assumed would open the lock. He frowned and picked up his fork, tasting the mashed potatoes experimentally. They weren't half bad.

* * *

 _Blip-blip._

Zack perked up and looked expectantly at the door. Several hours had passed. Jax hadn't come back to pick up his tray. It sat on the nightstand, bits of potato hardening on the plate. He had been shifting between wearing a trail on the linoleum and doing supersets of squats all afternoon. He was going crazy in this little room, waiting for news, unable to act. It went against every fiber of his being.

The door opened. It still wasn't Jax. It was Dr. Hyde, and he did not look happy.

"Zack," he said crisply. "You are not supposed to be up and walking around, much less _exercising_."

"Sorry, doc," Zack said, not sounding sorry at all. "But I really need to talk to Director Lazard."

"I'm afraid that's not possible," Dr. Hyde said, guiding Zack back to the bed. "However—" he spoke over the top of Zack as he started to interrupt. "I will see if Professor Hojo is available to speak to you."

"Hojo?" Zack echoed faintly. "Dr. Hojo is here?" Finally, there was a name he could associate with Shinra. He had heard of Dr. Hojo, although he'd never personally met him. He was highly ranked within Shinra, and he should have clearance to the information Zack needed. Zack nodded and forced himself to sit back down on the bed.

Dr. Hyde picked up a phone on the wall and dialed. "It's Klaus. Our young spe—uh, patient is very insistent on speaking with you."

Zack couldn't hear the other end of the conversation. After a long stretch of silence from his side, Hyde said crisply, "Understood," and hung up the phone.

Dr. Hyde turned back to Zack. He looked at him over the top of his glasses sternly. "Very well. Dr. Hojo will see you now, but be warned. He has no tolerance for threats or chest-beating, so I suggest you mind your manners while you visit. Some orderlies will be in to escort you shortly." Hyde strode swiftly out of the room, tilting his hip to one side as he approached the door. _Blip-blip_.

As soon as the door had closed behind him, Zack hurried to the door and knelt down. There, slightly below waist height, was a small glass lens built into the wall. _An access card reader!_ Zack thought triumphantly. _They must wear them on their hips._ Now that he knew how the lock mechanism worked, he would be able to escape if it proved necessary. But for now, he would see what to Dr. Hojo had to say.

Zack backed away from the door and started up on his squats again, waiting impatiently until he heard the familiar _blip-blip._ Wendy and another orderly he didn't recognize came through the door. They flanked Zack on both sides and led him from the room. "You know, guys, I'm starting to feel more like a prisoner than a patient here," he joked as they walked down the narrow cement hall. Neither of his escorts even cracked a smile. "Whew. Tough crowd," he muttered.

They climbed a set of stairs at the end of the hall and turned right. There was another set of stairs, and then a set of steel double doors. _Blip-blip_. These guys were awfully sneaky about unlocking the doors, but Zack was relatively sure that they were still using those hip-level sensors. They pushed open the doors and continued onward. The floor here changed to carpet, and the sheetrock walls had been painted. It even smelled different – more printer ink and less antiseptic.

After a left turn and another right, they finally arrived at an expensive-looking wooden door. A plaque at eye level proclaimed:

 _Horace J. Hojo  
Chief Scientist, Bio Engineering_

One of the orderlies rapped sharply at the door, followed by a brisk, "yes, yes" from the other side. The door slid smoothly to one side, receding into the wall, but neither of the orderlies stepped forward.

"Come in, I haven't got all day," the voice snapped. He had the most irritating voice Zack had ever heard – a high, reedy screech made even more obnoxious by the pompous attitude behind it.

Leaving his companions behind, Zack stepped boldly forward to meet the owner of the voice, a shrewd-looking man with wire-rimmed glasses and long brown hair pulled into a ponytail. He sat behind a large desk, covered in papers and folders. He waved dismissively at the orderlies and then the door slid closed behind Zack.

"Zack," Dr. Hojo said coolly. "I understand you wanted to see me."

Zack plopped down into a soft armchair in front of the desk. His lack of decorum seemed to get under the professor's skin, but Zack had no patience for pandering at the moment. "I'm looking for information regarding a fellow soldier that was with me on the Nibelheim mission."

"Ah," said Dr. Hojo, folding his hands in front of him on the desk. "I regret to inform you that General Sephiroth was KIA." His lips were pressed into a hard line.

"Er, no, I mean, I was aware of that. I was wondering about the infantry soldier. His name was Cloud Strife."

Hojo raised an eyebrow. "A fellow soldier? Come now, an infantry grunt can hardly be called your equal."

Zack sighed. He was so sick of the politics and the stupid ranks and titles. Not so long ago, making First Class had been the most important thing in his life, but it was all so meaningless now. He wanted to know about his _friend_.

"Whatever you want to call him," Zack said irritably. "Cloud Strife. He was there in the reactor. I need to make sure that Lazard has the whole story."

Hojo leaned back calmly in his chair. "I assure you, Director Lazard has all the information he needs."

Zack gripped the arms of the chair, fighting to control his temper. "Dr. Hojo, _please_." With an effort, he loosened his fingers. "I'm worried that he'll be blamed for the destruction of Nibelheim."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Hojo said calmly. "But all of the reactors have closed circuit cameras, so again, the director already knows what he needs to know."

"Professor—" Zack threatened to interrupt, but Hojo spoke over the top of him.

"And _the_ _cadet_ is here at the lab."

The air whooshed out of Zack's lungs as the professor's words hit him. "He's…alive?" Zack had been focusing on controlling Cloud's fate, because it was something he could _do_ , but buried underneath all that was the real fear that Cloud was beyond help.

"He's alive…for now," the professor confirmed, straightening stacks of paper on his desk.

"I want to see him," Zack blurted out, shooting to his feet.

"Impossible," Dr. Hojo said without batting an eye. "Now, I really don't have any more time to waste with this frivolity. We need to discuss your enhancement schedule."

"My _what?_ "

"Your enhancement schedule," Hojo repeated as he puffed out his chest. "For you, Zackary, have been chosen as the next candidate for the greatest project in Shinra history. The bio-engineering in which you were engaged as part of SOLDIER is nothing in comparison to what you will become. I will make you a _god_ among men!" His eyes glowed manically.

Zack sat back down, completely sidetracked by this bit of news. "But I…what if I don't want to?"

"It doesn't really matter," Hojo said, waving away his protests like a bothersome fly. "Your contract with Shinra already gave permission for any and all procedures."

 _Damn it! REALLY should have read that thing._

"Ok, so what about Cloud?"

"What about him?" Hojo sighed, looking irritated to have the subject brought back up.

"Well, is he part of this project too?"

Hojo looked thoughtful. "Indeed. His role will be…slightly different, but he will remain here at the lab with you." His beady eyes snapped back to Zack. "Now, you've already completed the first phase, which is the accelerated Mako treatment. This week we will be taking baseline measurements. Next week you will be started on the injections, and the following week we will be testing again. I will meet with you at least once each month to discuss your results and make any adjustments necessary. Any questions?"

"Wait, each _month_?" Zack asked. "How long are you planning on keeping me here?"

"It's hard to say. There are many factors to consider. Go on now," Hojo said dismissively. "I will see you next month."

The door slid open behind Zack, and Hojo immediately went back to his papers, as if he were already alone in his office.

 _Alrighty then. Guess that's my cue to leave._

* * *

The relief Zack had felt at hearing that Cloud was alive was chipped away over the next week as every request to see his friend was denied.

Otherwise, he couldn't complain about the treatment. He got three square meals a day. He had a flat screen TV above his bed and a nice bathroom with a shower in his room. He'd been undergoing a lot of tests to gather the baseline information, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. His phone had been returned to him, although as Dr. Hyde had explained, they were underground and no cellular signals could reach them. What appeared to be landline phones around the building turned out to be on a closed system. They couldn't make calls outside of the building, either. Apparently it was a top secret project. Even the lab techs lived on the site, and their activities were greatly restricted to reduce the risk of information leaks.

But at least he could play games on his phone. He had access to his pictures and his videos. At the moment, Zack was watching one of his favorites.

"Zack! I told you no more pictures! What are you doing? Are you _recording_?" a feminine voice squealed.

Zack's laugh sounded from off-screen. "I just want to remember what the prettiest girl on the planet looks like when I'm away."

The video stabilized and focused on a pretty girl in pink with an indulgent smile. "Really, Zack, are you telling me that you forget about me when you leave?"

"Never." Zack's arm appeared on the screen and wrapped around Aerith's waist, pulling her closer. "But my memory is never as good as the real thing."

Zack's face came onto the screen, nipping gently at her pink lips.

Aerith smiled and leaned her head back, out of reach of his seeking mouth. "Gods, you're such a sweet talker. Do you use that line on all the girls?"

Undeterred, Zack laid kisses across her neck. He held the phone out with his arm, giving a full view of the way her face flushed pink as his lips and tongue worked their way up to her ear.

"Yes," he murmured into her skin. "All the girls that sell flowers in the slums."

She let out a breathy moan. The basket she had been holding slipped from her fingers unnoticed as she brought her hand up and buried it in his hair. Her fingers moved, scraping her nails against his scalp. Gods, he loved the way she did that. It heightened every sense and electrified his skin.

The video tilted as he became too distracted to think about what he was trying to record, slipping down to show only their chins and lips and tongues and teeth, slipping and gliding and pressing until he could barely tell whose was whose.

From his hospital bed, live-Zack listened closely for the sound of the zipper that he knew he should be able to hear right then, and video-Zack inhaled sharply. Live-Zack slid down on the reclining bed and slipped his hand under the plain green scrubs they had given him to wear, and then inside the elastic waistband of his boxers. On the phone, video-Zack was lowering Aerith gently to the ground, pulling his lips away just long enough to ensure that his sword and the random pieces of armor she had pulled off hadn't fallen underneath her. The flowers never seemed to mind cushioning their caretaker. They never broke or crushed under her weight.

"Zack!" She giggled, glancing over at the phone still held in his extended hand. "You are _not_ recording this!"

"I'm not!" video-Zack protested, dropping the phone.

The camera faced up into the rafters of the old church, where sunlight peeked between the beams to nourish her impossible flowers. But the sounds continued – heavy breathing and shaky moans, rhythmic friction and his name slipping past her lips as he brought her closer and closer to the edge, the _blip-blip_ of the card reader…

"Shit!" Zack jerked upright in the reclining bed, dropping the phone on the floor in his haste to pull out his hand and straighten his clothes. It slid underneath the bed; the video played on as he scrambled to retrieve it, falling off the bed just as the door opened. He grabbed the phone and tapped frantically, desperately trying to stop the video, but several more seconds of audio played as Jax stood in the doorway with his rolling tray of food.

"Uh…" Jax looked at Zack sitting on the floor, trying to discreetly adjust himself. "Sorry to interrupt…"

Zack pushed the disheveled hair out of his face and tried to look casual. "No, it's fine. I was just….uh…I mean, I was playing a video game. And I dropped my phone."

Jax was trying hard not to smile. He pushed the tray just far enough into the room to clear the door. "Right. Well…I'm just going to leave this here for you for when you're uh…done with your game."

He backed out of the room and let the door close behind him, but it couldn't completely muffle the sound of Jax's laughter echoing in the hallway.

Zack let his head fall back against the side of the bed and laughed wryly. "Thanks, buddy. I'm pretty sure I'm done now."

* * *

It was the beginning of the second week. Zack had finished all of his baseline tests and measurements. He wasn't quite back to the level he was before the fight with Sephiroth, but he had done better than he expected. The mako tank had accelerated his healing, leaving only a small scar and a slightly tender area where his chest had been split open.

Still, there were too many hours in the day where he was left to his own devices, and he was starting to get obsessive about Cloud. What was his condition? Where were they keeping him? Why wouldn't they let him see his best friend?

 _Blip-blip._

Dr. Hyde entered the room, his hands in the pockets of his white lab coat. "Good morning, Zack. We're going to start your infusions today –"

"No." Zack said shortly.

"Excuse me?" Dr. Hyde's eyebrows shot to his hairline.

"I'm not going to do anything else for you until you let me see Cloud. Let me see for myself that he's ok, and then you can do whatever you want."

Dr. Hyde scowled angrily. He was clearly not used to having his orders questioned, and he was impatient to get started with the next phase of the treatment. "We need to do the infusion now. I'll see what I can do about visiting your friend this afternoon."

"No," Zack said louder, crossing his arms. "You've been putting me off all week. I need a guarantee that I can see him."

Dr. Hyde's eyes glinted. "You know we can do this the hard way, Zack. I really don't need your permission."

Zack laughed incredulously. "Really. You think you can overpower me?"

"Not with strength alone, no. But I have other tools at my disposal," Dr. Hyde said coldly.

Zack blinked, thrown by the dark streak he glimpsed in the doctor.

In the next moment, it was like a light bulb switched on in Dr. Hyde. His pleasant smile came back. "Ok, Zack. How about this? I will talk to Professor Hojo once we get the infusion started, and I'll do my best to make sure you get in to see your friend this afternoon."

Zack sat back warily. He was aware that Dr. Hyde still hadn't promised him anything, but it was clear that he wasn't going to convince the doctor to bring him to Cloud right then. He needed a plan. If Dr. Hyde came back with a negative response that afternoon, he would just have to apply a little more _force_ to his request.

"Fine," he finally agreed. "But I'm counting on you, doc. I _will_ be seeing Cloud this afternoon."

Dr. Hyde didn't comment. Instead, he got to work setting up an IV pole and a bag containing a viscous green fluid. "You need to lie back, Zack. This might make you a bit dizzy," he said.

Zack settled back against the pillows and made sure that his phone and the remote for the TV were within reach. Once he was comfortable, he gave the doctor access to his arm.

Hyde poked in the needle. Zack ignored him and used his other hand to flip through his pictures and videos on his phone. He found a video of Cloud from the academy and smiled. He started watching it, only peripherally aware of when the doctor left the room.

All he could see was a spiky blond head pointing at the camera, because the kid was bent forward with his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath. "How are you…not even winded?" Cloud panted.

"Aww, come on. It was only 10 miles!" Zack said from off-screen.

"Yeah but…normal people…actually _jog_ …when they're going…that far." His words were interspersed with harsh breaths.

"Normal? I thought you wanted to be SOLDIER, kid."

Cloud stood up and braced his arms behind his head. His face was bright red. His forest green shirt was glued to his chest with sweat. He wasn't quite as defined as Zack, and he was shorter, with a more compact build, but he looked pretty good for a kid of fifteen. "Don't call me _kid,_ " he said irritably.

Zack laughed. "Once you grow a few hairs on your chest, I'll stop."

Cloud sprawled out on the grass on his back. "Fuck off," he said, but there was no real heat to it.

Zack sat down next to him. "Ooh hoo hoo! Damn, boy, you kiss your mother with that mouth?"

"No, but _your_ mother sure likes my mouth."

Zack squawked and Cloud laughed out loud. The video ended.

On his bed, Zack smiled. They hadn't known each other that well yet back then – Zack was more of a mentor. He'd never met someone so determined to become SOLDIER before. The kid was at a disadvantage with his height, but Zack had been the youngest person ever to reach First Class; norms didn't mean much to him. So he had started training Cloud. It was around the time Angeal has disappeared, so it was a nice distraction for Zack.

After Angeal's death, he had stopped answering Cloud's calls and texts. Their relationship was too similar to the one he'd just lost, and Zack was in too much pain, too angry with Angeal and himself to deal with Cloud.

But Cloud was persistent. After all of his messages had been ignored, he showed up at Zack's dorm. Having made First Class by that time, Zack had a private room, and he'd been pacing and brooding by himself for an over hour when the knock on his door interrupted his stewing.

He had stormed over to the door and jerked it open. "What?" he practically spat at Cloud.

Cloud recoiled, but he didn't back down. "I just…I haven't seen you for a while…and we were supposed to meet for sword training."

Zack glowered. "Fine. You want to train? Let's train." He stomped back into his room and grabbed his sword – not the buster sword, which he still couldn't bring himself to use, but his old faithful longsword – and stuck it on his back. Without another word, he walked quickly down to the training room, Cloud hurrying to keep up with his longer strides.

Once inside, they squared off. Zack wasn't in the mood to teach; he just wanted to hit something. But he couldn't take his frustrations out on the kid. He took a deep breath and let it out, calming himself a little before taking a fast but light swipe at him. Cloud blocked it easily. It seemed he'd been working on his own, or maybe with someone else, because he'd definitely improved. Zack swung a little harder. That, too, was easily blocked, and then Cloud started hitting back.

Zack picked up the pace a little more, invigorated by the outlet for his frustration. As he moved, the thoughts stirred in the back of his mind.

 _Damn you, Angeal._

 _Why did you make me do that?_

 _You were too much of a coward to kill yourself. You forced my hand._

 _Do you think I will ever get that image out of my mind? How did you think I would feel, for the rest of my life, knowing what I had done?_

The anger was brewing again, and Zack ground his teeth together.

 _You…selfish…asshole! You know what? FUCK YOU, Angeal!_

He had a split second to register the widening of Cloud's blue eyes as he swung as hard as he could. Cloud flew across the room, hitting the wall with a resounding crack, bouncing off and falling forward onto the floor.

Zack dropped his sword. "Oh shit. Shit! Cloud. Cloud!" He ran toward the crumpled body on the floor. Sliding down next to him, he rolled Cloud over to see his face.

He was knocked out. The left side of his face was red and starting to swell already. Blood dripped from behind his ear. "Aww, shit, buddy. Let's get you to the infirmary."

He picked up his friend and started walking, outwardly calm, despite the fact that he now had a new reason to be torn up inside. Cloud groaned and opened his eyes, looking up at Zack's chin.

"Zack?" he said, sounding confused.

"I'm sorry, buddy. I…I lost control for a minute there." Zack's voice shook. He knew it was inadequate, but it was the best he had to offer.

Cloud was quiet. Zack looked down. Cloud's left eye was red with broken blood vessels – a vivid reminder to Zack for weeks afterwards. "Really. I'm really sorry," he said sincerely.

"It's ok," Cloud murmured. "Sometimes you just need to let it out." His eyes drifted closed again.

Other than a concussion and some colorful bruising, Cloud was fine. He never did get angry at Zack for trying to throw him through a wall, and Zack discovered that, contrary to his fears, mentoring Cloud was not at all like being mentored by Angeal. For one thing, _Zack_ was not like Angeal. He wasn't nearly as serious, and Cloud learned more from fooling around with him than from structured lessons.

And besides that, he just plain _liked_ the kid. His calming quiet was a counterbalance to Zack's occasionally overwhelming energy, but he had a dry wit that came out when Zack least expected it. While Zack _reacted_ , Cloud thought through things. They were as opposite as their hair colors, and they fit together like pieces of a puzzle.

Before long, the two had become inseparable. Someone had even once called Cloud _his_ puppy, but a sharp look from the rest of the room and a smack from one of the guy's friends stopped it cold.

Zack had been so excited to find out that Cloud was going on the mission to Nibelheim with him. He was getting used to Sephiroth's stoic manner, but he spent most of his downtime on missions texting Cloud anyway. Now he would have someone there to laugh at his stupid jokes. He wouldn't have to spend nearly as much time talking to himself. Plus, he could secretly torment Cloud over the man crush he had on Sephiroth. Cloud would have been humiliated if Sephiroth had known, but really, Sephiroth was used to it by now.

It should have been great. The setup was perfect. But nothing went as planned.

* * *

Everything was fuzzy. Cloud tried to lift his hand to rub his eyes, but he couldn't move. Feeling nothing more than mild concern, he tried to blink, but his eyes wouldn't close, either. The grogginess cleared and he started to panic. Bubbles floated up in front of his eyes. _What is…I'm underwater? What…how…shit!_ Despite this knowledge, his first instinct was to scream. Luckily, his lungs didn't comply. In his mind, he struggled madly, but his body refused to respond.

A strange gurgling sound came through the water. The level of the fluid started to drop, and Cloud became aware that he was inside some kind of glass tube. Under a mop of black hair, stark green eyes were watching him intently through the glass. Slowly, a young man's face came into focus, and then a white lab coat. The man's lips moved, but Cloud couldn't hear anything except the liquid draining at his feet.

When the last of the fluid was gone, the glass of the tube slid open. Cloud felt his muscles release as he fell forward, gasping in lungfuls of sweet oxygen. A large woman grabbed him before he could hit the floor, slinging him carelessly onto a gurney.

Still panicked, Cloud immediately pushed himself back up. The woman muscled him back down and pinned him to the gurney.

The stark green eyes came back into his field of vision. "Calm down, kid. You're just fine."

But the words meant nothing to Cloud. His muscles fought against the woman, granting him a few inches of freedom before being pushed down again. He screamed mindlessly, struggling with all his strength.

"Damn it, Kyle, get the sedative!" the woman grunted as she fought his panicked flailing.

A sharp prick on his arm prefaced the sudden slowing of his heart, the slackening of his muscles, and the darkening of his vision. Then he knew nothing more.

* * *

Zack looked down at the crumpled form of the doctor. He had probably been a bit overzealous, but damn the consequences. He had a bad feeling about Cloud, and the doctor had come back with his predictable negative response to his request to see him.

Well, it was done now. There was nowhere to go but forward. First, he needed to set the scene. Opening the cupboard above his bed, he dug until he found a suitable object – what turned out to be a small metal scale. Mentally apologizing to the doctor, he held it over his head and dropped it. The scale bounced off of the balding head, leaving a sizeable dent and a trickle of blood. Zack winced. He would have to count on the lack of oxygen clouding Dr. Hyde's memory. He carefully arranged the doctor's body on the floor, and then dug through his pockets. As he suspected, an employee ID badge was pinned inside of a small side pocket.

The picture was a rather unflattering shot of Dr. Hyde. To the right of the image were the words:

Dr. Klause Hyde  
Bio Engineering  
Fanta White Ltd.

It wasn't a Shinra badge, but Zack wasn't surprised. Shinra often used shell companies to hide their more questionable undertakings. He brought the badge back over to the door and waved it around in front of the small sensor. _Blip-blip._ Success!

Out in the hallway, he looked around. There were a series of doors, identical to his, stretching down the hallway in both directions. He set off to the right, waving the badge in front of the next door. It was a hospital suite, identical to his own, but completely empty.

He worked his way down the hall, checking each door as he went. After a few more empty hospital suites, he opened a door marked 'OR 1'.

This room was also empty, but markedly different. A starkly bright silver table was at the center of the room. Gutters ran along both sides of the table and drained through two large tubes into a basin at one end. A huge, moveable light lurked over the top of the table, and leather straps hung down from its sides. It was a surgical suite, he realized, although he wondered what use the leather straps could have. There were shelves and cupboards lining the room, stocked with gauze, dozens of labeled bottles, and various surgical tools. The room held a morbid fascination for him, but he pulled himself away. Cloud wasn't in there.

Zack continued along the hall, with only a cursory glance into 'OR 2' and 'OR 3'. He knew he was running out of time for his cover story to be viable. He turned the corner at a T-intersection, entering a new hallway with the cement walls and ceiling that he remembered from the day he'd woken up. The mako tanks were for accelerated healing; if Cloud was as injured as Zack remembered, he would likely be in one of those. He took off at a run down the hall. There were no doors along this hallway, only a large set of double doors at the end. He had almost reached the doors when they were smacked open by a rolling gurney.

He skidded to a stop as he reached the gurney and the startled young man pushing it. Even limp and wet, he would recognize those blond spikes anywhere.

Zack grabbed onto the side of the gurney and pulled it toward him, ignoring the sputtering of the man in the white lab coat. "Cloud! Buddy, I've been so–" He stopped mid-sentence, realizing that Cloud's eyes were closed, and he hadn't moved.

He looked up at the man. "What's wrong with him?" He was vaguely familiar, and Zack finally recognized the lab tech who had opened up his mako tank.

"It's just a sedative," Kyle blurted, looking scared. "He freaked out when he woke up in the mako tank."

"Well of course he did," Zack said angrily. "It's freaking terrifying to wake up like that."

Kyle stood taller, but his voice was still shaky. "What are you doing out in the hall by yourself?" he demanded. "You shouldn't be out of your room."

Zack remembered his cover story then. "Oh! I was out here looking for help. Something fell out of the cupboard and hit Dr. Hyde on the head. I think he's really hurt." Zack plastered a look of concern on his face.

Looking worried, Kyle walked back a few feet and pressed an intercom button mounted in the wall. "Code green in med suite B-6. Repeat: code green in med suite B-6."

Kyle returned to the gurney, where Zack had moved the sheet to find his friend's hand. Anger came over him in a flash.

"Why the hell do you have him strapped down?" Zack demanded.

Kyle held his hands up defensively. "It's for his own protection. I told you, he panicked when he woke up."

"And you think it's going to be better when he wakes up like this? What is wrong with you people?"

A pair of footsteps behind him alerted him to the presence of two orderlies. Sure enough, Zack turned around to see two burly men coming toward him. They had the walk and build of trained soldiers, innocuous green scrubs notwithstanding. He gave them a disarming smile. "Hey, fellas." He held his hands loosely at his sides, knowing that anything else would be seen as a sign of aggression. Honestly, a good old fashioned brawl would have felt damn good right then, but it wasn't the time.

The shorter man gestured back in the direction from which they had come. "Let's go, Zack. We need to get you back to your room."

Although his tone was courteous, Zack could see the leashed aggression in his eyes. "Wait, what about Cloud?"

"I'll be taking him to his room," Kyle said.

"But he'll just be panicked again," Zack stalled. "Bring him to my room so he can see me when he wakes up. Trust me, it will calm him down." Now that he had him in his sights, he didn't want to lose him again. He didn't even know if he was ok yet.

Kyle looked down at his patient. "I guess we can bring him there for now. I'll ask the doctor when we get there."

* * *

"There he is! Grab him!" Dr. Hyde was sitting up in a chair with an ice pack held against his head, and two orderlies in blue scrubs by his side. The burly men who had escorted Zack immediately grabbed his arms.

Zack didn't resist. "Doc! I'm so glad you're ok! I was kinda freaking out when you wouldn't wake up. That scale must be heavier than it looks."

The doctor eyed him suspiciously. "What are you talking about?"

Zack pretended to look around, spotting the scale on the floor. It had been knocked under the bed at some point, but it was still speckled with his blood on the corner. "That scale right there," he said, pointing. "You were getting something out of that cupboard over my bed and that scale fell out. Knocked you right in the head. I gotta admit, I was thinking the worst, man. It looked bad."

The doctor eyed him suspiciously. "I don't recall that happening."

"Well yeah, that's not surprising," Zack said solemnly. "It all happened pretty fast. I didn't even see it. You just collapsed on the floor and I couldn't get you to wake up. If it wasn't for the blood, I probably wouldn't have even figured it out."

Dr. Hyde stared him down for a minute longer. Zack carefully schooled his expression into the proper combination of concern and relief. Finally, the doctor nodded to the two green-clad orderlies, who released Zack's arms. His eyes shifted to Kyle, standing in the doorway, holding on to Cloud's gurney.

"Kyle! What is he doing in here? You should be taking him to his own room."

"Um, yes, sir. I was on my way there, but then Zack found me and said you needed help."

Kyle had probably worded it in that way to cover his own ass, but it lent credence to Zack's version of the story. Dr. Hyde glared at Kyle. "Can I speak to you for a moment, outside?"

"Sure," Kyle said nervously.

Dr. Hyde walked in front of the sensor and pulled on the door handle. It didn't budge. He frowned and held out his hand to Zack.

"Oh, right," Zack said, handing him the badge.

Hyde scowled at him as he waved the badge in front of the sensor. _Blip-blip_. The two men exited. The guards-dressed-as-orderlies stood in front of the door with their arms crossed. Zack chose to ignore them and looked down at Cloud. He touched a finger to his friend's pale face. His own skin looked so dark in contrast to Cloud's, but that was nothing new. A memory came floating back.

 _"Dude, how can you stand to wear that helmet out here? Aren't you hot?"_

 _Cloud pulled off the helmet that covered his eyes and most of his head. "Yeah, but I'll look like a tomato by the end of the day if I don't."_

 _Zack looked over at the sweat plastering Cloud's blond spikes to his head. "You already look like a tomato," he pointed out._

 _Cloud scowled and wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his arm. "That's just 'cause I'm hot. At least I can cool off later. If I burn I'll have to deal with it for a week."_

 _They were walking through the jungle, Zack swiping idly at the flora with his sword as they walked. A trail of shredded leaves followed behind them like nature's bread crumbs. The heat was sweltering, but Zack was used to it. Being from the mountains, Cloud sweated through his uniform and burned any exposed skin within an hour of the sun._

 _Zack couldn't help laughing. "Put your helmet back on, kid. We'll get back to the hotel and have you back to pasty white in no time."_

 _Cloud fanned his face with his hand. "You got any more water?"_

 _Zack passed over his canteen. "Yours gone already? Oh, I see. You spilled it all over your uniform."_

 _Cloud shot him a glare before he tipped back the water. Besides growing up with the heat of Gongaga, the mako in Zack's veins seemed to help regulate any extremes of temperature. "You know you—"_

 _"Shut up," Zack blurted._

 _"What? I haven't even finished insulting you yet," Cloud grumbled._

 _"No, shut up! Listen."_

 _They both stopped and listened. From the look on Cloud's face, he hadn't heard anything, but Zack's enhanced ears picked up a distant voice. He tilted his head, trying to pick up on the words, but he got nothing but garble. He motioned for them to continue forward, and they walked on, their steps stealthy and silent._

 _They might have made it through entirely unnoticed, if not for the rope vine that snapped taut around Zack's ankle, and the astonished yell that slipped out when he was hefted into the air by his leg. Before they knew it, they were surrounded by jungle natives speaking rapidly in a foreign tongue, pointing spears of sharpened bone at the two of them. They were barely covered with strips of material that looked completely organic, some of them not even covering the parts that would allow them into polite society._

 _"Oh shit oh shit oh shit," Zack mumbled. He had lost his sword when the world had been turned upside down, and the blood rushing to his head was making it hard to think._

 _Over the rapid stream of unintelligible words, Cloud's voice stood out. He was speaking more slowly than the natives, but they seemed to understand him. They slowly lowered their spears as Cloud pulled out his gun and held it up for them to see. He spoke several more words that Zack couldn't understand, and then aimed the gun straight at Zack._

 _"Whoa, whoa, whoa, buddy. What are you doing? I know that thing's loaded," Zack stuttered._

 _Cloud didn't acknowledge him. He spoke some rapid fire gibberish and cocked the rifle, then lined up the scope._

 _"Whoa! Cloud! Come on, man, it's me! Don't even play with that thing! Gun safety 101! Cloud! That's not funny, Cloud!"_

 _Cloud squeezed the trigger. Zack screamed._

 _The scream was cut short by his impact with the ground. An excited babble rose up from the natives, and they knelt down, their noses touching the dirt._

 _Cloud's face was absolutely stoic. He dropped down on one knee next to Zack and pulled a knife out of his boot. He sawed rapidly at the remaining vine around Zack's ankle and spoke under his breath. "Stand up slowly and keep your head down. Do not speak, and whatever you do, don't look anyone in the eye, especially me."_

 _Cloud rose slowly to his feet and nodded cordially at the dark-skinned natives. They scooted aside to make a path for Cloud and Zack._

 _Zack followed Cloud's instructions to the letter and kept his eyes glued to the ground. He'd almost pissed his pants a few minutes ago, and he wasn't going to do anything to risk getting put back at the mercy of the natives._

 _He didn't say a word for the miles leading to their pick-up point. He stood there in silence until the truck arrived, afraid they might still be nearby. It was probably the longest stretch of silence ever to come from Zack voluntarily, and he was about ready to burst by the time they closed the doors of the truck behind them._

 _"What the hell did you say to those guys?" were the words that exploded from his mouth._

 _"Um, well, funny story," Cloud said, failing to hold back his grin. "Apparently they've only met one other person with blond hair before. He'd told them he was some kind of shaman, and that his hair had no color because he'd been purified by Holy or something. So I just went with it."_

 _A laugh bubbled out of Zack. "You're making that up."_

 _"Nope. And then I told them that my gun was my magic stick and that I would point it at something and the gods would break it if they were angry at the tribe."_

 _"So you pointed it at me?!"_

 _"I pointed it at the vine," Cloud corrected. "And the tree branch right behind it. Even if I missed, I'd probably hit the branch and they'd still believe me."_

 _"Or you could have missed and hit_ me _," Zack sputtered._

 _Cloud smiled serenely. "But I didn't miss. So what's the problem?"_

 _Zack flopped down on the bed of the truck. "What's the problem?" he muttered. "No problem. No problem at all." Then he sat up. "Where did you learn that language anyway?"_

 _"There's a tribe in the mountains of Nibelheim that have a similar dialect. It wasn't quite right, but the words sounded familiar so…" he shrugged. "I gave it a shot."_

 _Zack laid back again and laughed. It was bordering on hysterical, releasing the tension of the last few hours. "You're something else, Cloud. Dinner's on me tonight, alright?"_

 _Cloud snorted. "Dinner's on Shinra when we're on assignment. But nice try. I'll remember that next time I need to save your ass."_

 _Zack grinned. "Ok, I'll buy you drinks tonight."_

 _"Again, nice try," Cloud said, rolling his eyes. "Last time I checked, the legal age was still 18 in this part of the world."_

 _"So what? I'm buying. No one will give you a second look if you're with me."_

 _It was true. Zack was barely 18 himself, but no one ever questioned a man in a SOLDIER uniform. Several hours later, they were both sufficiently relaxed after the day's adventures, sprawled in a corner booth at the pub. Zack had never retrieved his sword, and Cloud had dropped his helmet, but they were both standard issue and could easily be replaced. As predicted, Cloud's pale skin had turned a painful shade of red without the helmet. The numbing effect of the booze was just an extra perk for him._

 _"So I get that they believed you were, like, some sort of holy person or whatever. But what did you tell them about me?"_

 _"Oh." Cloud laughed, a short trill. Then he laughed harder. Within minutes, he was practically rolling on the floor with his thoughts._

 _"Dude! Are you gonna tell me what's so funny?"_

 _Cloud got himself under control and downed a shot that Zack had placed in front of him a few minutes ago. "Heh. Heheh. I told them that you were my…uh…servant…brought along to…heh…service me."_

 _"Wait, what?" Zack shot to his feet as Cloud collapsed in giggles again. "Are you serious?"_

 _"Hah! Heheh. Yeah," Cloud managed to spit out. He wiped his streaming eyes and attempted to sit up straight. "Their holy people aren't allowed to marry or like, copulate, so sometimes they travel with servants to…heh…avoid temptation."_

 _"What the fuck?!" Zack exclaimed, but even he was finding it funny at this point in the night. He plopped back down in the cushioned seat next to Cloud, unable to resist his contagious laughter. "I need a couple more shots before I'm ready to be your sex slave, buddy."_

That had only been a few months ago. He couldn't imagine going back to life before Cloud anymore. Since he'd become First Class, he may have been abusing his status to bring Cloud along on more missions than most cadets would see during their whole term, but as long as they got the job done, Lazard seemed happy to look the other way. In Zack's mind, there was no doubt that Cloud would be promoted to SOLDIER that year, so the training he got on their missions wasn't being wasted.

Perhaps he relied on Cloud more than he realized, he reflected. He felt a million times better since he had seen him, knowing he would be there with him. Now if only he would open his eyes, Zack could let go of that last, lingering thread of anxiety.

 _Blip-blip._

The door opened from the outside. The two green-scrub orderlies stepped aside, allowing entrance to Dr. Hyde and a chastised Kyle. Dr. Hyde addressed Zack directly, while Kyle refused to make eye contact.

"We will be taking this boy to his own room now, Zack. I'm sure you will have the opportunity to see him again once he wakes."

Kyle grabbed the gurney at Cloud's feet and began pulling him out of the room. Zack resisted the urge to stop him. It would do no good to fight them now. He would just have to believe that they would keep their word.

Foolish.


	3. Together Again

**Professor Hojo believes his office is his private domain. His conversations are confidential. His words are too important to be overheard by the wrong person.**

 **But I am the watcher. I see everything.**

 **I see two smug middle-aged men, sitting in Hojo's little wet bar cove, sipping brandy or whiskey or whatever it is that self-important scientists sip while they talk about their specimens in cold, clinical terms.**

 **"We had to put the young one back into the tank," Dr. Hyde says.**

 **Professor Hojo looks irritated by the subject. "The infantryman?" With confirmation from Hyde, he grimaces. "I know I'm going to regret asking this, but why should I care?"**

 **"Well, since all of the other Nibelheim residents have been released to test your 'Reunion' theory, I thought you wanted to monitor the behavior of this one in close quarters."**

 **Hojo lets out a long suffering sigh. "Do you have any idea what I hate most in the world, Klaus?"**

 **Dr. Hyde scoffs. "I don't know. Kittens?"**

 **"Being told things I already know, particularly things I said myself, and even moreso, my own plans. I detest it when people insinuate that my intelligence is as pathetically low as theirs."**

 **Dr. Hyde doesn't rise to the bait. He stares blandly back at the professor.**

 **"Fine," Professor Hojo says with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Why did you have to put the boy back in the tank?"**

 **"He woke up and panicked again. He was thrashing around so much that his stitches tore open and he was bleeding heavily." Hyde shakes his head in disgust. "Damn it, I knew I should have redone your abhorrent stitching."**

 **Hojo scowls at him. "If he panicked the first time, why didn't you have your assistant strap him down?"**

 **"He _was_ strapped down, but he thrashed so much that he broke one of the straps."**

 **Dr. Hojo grunts. "That's what you get for ordering substandard generic parts. Stupid cutbacks. Doesn't Shinra understand the importance of my work? I'm—"**

 **"There was nothing wrong with those straps," Hyde cuts in. "He shouldn't have been able to break them."**

 **"Oh, come, now, he's barely more than a child," Hojo says with disgust.**

 **Hyde smirks and takes a leisurely sip of his drink. "A child who destroyed your perfect soldier," he says calmly.**

 **Hojo looks ready to snap back, but then his expression changes to thoughtful. "Yes. That's right. Then tell me, Klaus. How do you think he was able to snap those restraints?"**

 **Dr. Hyde shrugs. He's not as invested in the answer Hojo seeks in the boy. He is there to make sure that whatever mistakes Hojo made with Sephiroth are not repeated with Zack. Still, he is a scholar by nature and can't help speculating. "Fear, maybe? Perhaps his response to adrenaline is more pronounced than usual. Whatever extraordinary capabilities he possesses must lie within his mind."**

 **I don't like the slow smile that appears on Hojo's face. He tips back the remainder of his glass and sets it down on the table. "Fear. Yes. I can work with that."**

 **"Yes, good," Hyde says impatiently. "Now can we move on to the more pressing issue? Your primary specimen?"**

 **The smile drops from Hojo's face. "What's the problem with him?"**

 **Dr. Hyde scowls. "Zack is becoming more belligerent since he saw the boy. We removed him to his own room before the sedative wore off, so Zack has no idea that he had to be put back into the tank. I can't imagine how much worse he would be if he knew. Honestly, it's like trying to pull teeth from a rabid bandersnatch to get him to do anything."**

 **"For Gaia's sake, can't you control him?" Hojo stands and returns to the wet bar to refill his glass from the decanter. "I didn't realize you were incapable of handling one single, dim-witted man. If the orderlies are insufficient, you can always call the enforcers to subdue him."**

 **"I realize that, but as you said, his compliance—"**

 **Dr. Hojo's brows sink, and Hyde catches himself. He clears his throat and starts again. "I believe that Zack will be significantly more cooperative if we let the boy stay in the same room. I also think that the boy will likely be calmer if he sees someone familiar when he awakes. Zack…may be right about that."**

 **Professor Hojo returns to his chair, a full glass clenched in his spidery fingers. He doesn't offer to refill Hyde's. "Fine," he says dismissively. "Next time the boy wakes up, put them in a room together."**

 **Dr. Hyde looks relieved. I don't think he expected Hojo to agree so easily. Hyde gets up to leave, grabbing his lab coat from the hook by the door.**

 **"Oh, and Klaus? Talk to Alex about redesigning the security system. I don't _ever_ want to hear about Zack getting out of his room again."**

 **Dr. Hyde nods grimly.**

 ** _Great_.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Together Again**

* * *

 _Blip-blip._

Zack tensed and watched the door. It had been four days since he saw Cloud being wheeled down the hall in a soaking hospital gown. In that time, he steadfastly refused to do any further tests or examinations for Dr. Hyde. He was certain that he would soon be at the receiving end of a needle, and he had no intention of making it easy for them. But Dr. Hyde seemed prepared to compromise this time. Instead of outright refusing to discuss Cloud, he came with a morsel of information. "Your young friend had to be put back in the tank. He injured himself when he awoke."

Zack perked up. "Is he gonna be ok? How much longer does he need to be in there?"

"Not much longer," Hyde said vaguely. "There's nothing else we can do for him right now. However, our entire schedule has been thrown off due to your refusal to cooperate. Are you ready to continue with the infusions now?"

Zack focused on the doctor with a calculating look in his eyes. This was the opening he had been looking for. "I will cooperate with whatever you want, on one condition."

Dr. Hyde's eyes narrowed. "You have conditions now?"

"Just one," Zack said. "I'll do whatever you want, whatever you ask of me for the rest of this…treatment, as long as Cloud can room in here when he's better. When he's done being healed, I mean. Done with the tank."

Dr. Hyde crossed his arms and studied Zack. "The experiment has to take priority."

"It will, I swear!" Zack insisted. "I'll be the most cooperative patient ever. But I'm going crazy in here without someone to talk to. I can't call or text anyone, and Hojo won't even tell me how long I'm gonna be stuck here. I need this. For my sanity."

"Mm hmm." Dr. Hyde squinted at Zack over his tiny spectacles. "Well, let's see how you do the next few days. If you can prove your willingness to support the project, we can arrange for you to share a room."

Zack whooped out loud. He picked up the doctor and swung him around, oblivious to his startled cries. "Oh yes, thank you doc! You won't regret it, I swear."

"Zackary! Put me down!" he ordered sternly.

Zack quickly set him back on his feet. "Sorry. My bad. Sorry."

Dr. Hyde straightened his lab coat, brushing out imagined wrinkles, but Zack could swear there was a hint of amusement is his eyes. "Right. Then let's get started. We need to restart the infusion sequence, so get comfortable on the bed. I'll send one of the lab techs in to get the IV started, and someone will check on you every hour."

"Uh, can't I have a nurse button or something?"

"No," Hyde said shortly. "We don't have that technology here. Sorry." He spun around and let himself out the door.

Zack scowled and settled himself onto the bed. "Didn't sound very sorry," he grumbled. "That technology? Gimme a break. You can make super humans but you can't put in a fucking call button? That's a load of bullshit." He wasn't really worried for himself. The mako protected him from almost everything. He rarely got sick and he knew how to handle pain, but with Cloud in there, still vulnerable to human injuries and illnesses, he didn't like the idea of being unable to reach anyone if something happened. He flipped through his phone, wondering how he was going to kill the next several hours.

 _Blip-blip._

He glanced up to see a familiar mop of black hair. "Kyle! What's up, my man?"

Kyle just stared at him, not entirely sure if he was being mocked. "Uh, I'm just here to start your infusion." He pulled a rolling IV stand behind him with the solution already prepared in the bag.

Zack propped his arms behind his head. "Loosen up, Kyle. I'm not gonna bite. Hey, you work in the tank room, right? Is Cloud back in there?"

Kyle blinked nervously as he fumbled with the needle. "Yeah, he's in there."

"He look ok?" Zack asked casually. He really had to figure out how to get this guy to relax and trust him.

"Sure, I guess. I mean, he looks the same as before."

Zack nodded. "Are you gonna be the one in there when he wakes up?"

Kyle was looking more uncomfortable by the second. "Look, I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be talking to you about—"

"Because if you are, I can tell you how to calm him down. Just tell him you're taking him to see Zack, ok? Even if he freaks out again, he should mellow out when he hears my name."

Kyle pulled down Zack's right arm from behind his head and busied himself inserting the needle. He struggled a bit – a SOLDIER's skin is much tougher than a regular human's – but finally managed to jab it through. "Thanks," he finally mumbled.

Without another word, Kyle collected the plastic wrappings from the equipment and let himself out of the room.

Zack laughed and shook his head. "You're a weird dude, Kyle."

* * *

She was there with him again. Cloud felt the warm glow of her presence. As usual, he was in a field of gray. Lightning flickered in the background, but even with the brief flashes of illumination, there was nothing to see. "You're back," he said softly.

"Of course," he heard in her caressing tone. "I told you I would be."

"But when I was awake, you weren't there. I called out for you—"

"In front of the Other?" He felt her displeasure as a sharp pain to the gut.

He gasped and shook his head. "No! No, in my head. I didn't call out loud."

The pain eased. "Alright. Good. It's very important that you never tell the Other about me. He could sever our connection." Her voice turned to silk again. "You don't want that, do you, love?"

"No! No, I want you with me! But why weren't you there when I was awake? You said you would be, and I needed you."

She was silent for a moment. "Our connection is not yet strong enough. You aren't letting me in."

"I tried! I don't know how. Please, show me how," he begged.

"I can't. It's not something that can be taught. You just have to stop resisting me."

Cloud sat down. He couldn't see a ground, or any kind of walls, or really anything that indicated three dimensionality except for his own body, but just the same, he could stand and sit in the endless expanse of gray.

"I like it here, guardian angel. I don't want to go back."

"I'm sorry, but you must. At least for now. Someday we will be together forever, but not yet. Our bond must be stronger."

"But do I have to wake up?" He knew he sounded like a child, after he'd worked so hard to shed the boy he used to be, but it was different now. He sensed that she understood, that she liked to feel needed, and he liked to please her.

"Soon, but not yet, love."

Cloud sighed. He would just enjoy this time with her for now. "I'm glad you found me, guardian angel. Do you have a name?"

Her warmth surrounded him like a hug. "Just call me…Mother."

* * *

The infusion made Zack sleepy, but he didn't want to sleep. He was thinking about Cloud, about the way he used to look when he was healthy and whole. Thinking of the pale, sickly Cloud made him sick to his stomach, and it wouldn't wash away.

He picked up his phone and scrolled through the gallery, looking for something to replace that image. He smiled when he came across the previous year's cadet graduation ceremony. Cloud was lined up on the stage with all the other cadets, looking sharp in his freshly pressed uniform and shiny buttons. He still stood out with that crazy blond hair, which Zack suspected he kept spiked to give himself a little extra height. He wasn't _that_ short, but people in the SOLDIER program tended to run on the larger side, generally at least six feet. If he had been anyone else, Zack would have tried to talk him into pursuing the covert ops track, but Cloud had his mind made up. It was SOLDIER or nothing.

Zack's smile faded.

By the end of the ceremony, it turned out that it was nothing. Cloud hadn't been promoted to the next class. When the names had been called, when they were past the 'S' names and it was clear that he wouldn't be moving on, his face showed not a trace of emotion, but Zack knew it had to be tearing him up inside. He had wanted it more than anything.

Zack had caught up with him at the reception afterwards.

 _"Hey, man, sorry about the cut. Those guys are idiots if they can't see your potential."_

 _Cloud shrugged and looked away. "It's fine. I'll just…"_

 _But it was clear that Cloud had no idea what he was going to do. The idea that he wouldn't make it just never crossed his mind. It hadn't crossed Zack's, either. He truly did believe they were blind to pass Cloud over._

 _"Hey, don't even worry about it," Zack said, putting on a cheerful tone. "Just re-enroll next year. You'll have another year to grow and, hell, by then you'll be top of the class."_

 _Cloud looked down at his cheap plastic punch cup. "I don't think so, Zack," he said quietly._

 _"What, are you kidding?" Zack put his arm around him and tried to pull him forward, but Cloud stiffened._

 _"I'm not kidding," he said. "I'm not cut out for it. I should just go home. Learn how to farm." Finally, a trace of bitterness crept into his voice._

 _Zack crossed his arms and looked at his friend. Cloud stared back, unwavering. Finally, he gestured to Cloud's glass. "What are you drinking?"_

 _Cloud looked startled at the change of subject. "Uh…punch."_

 _"Just punch?"_

 _"Yeah just punch," Cloud said, the sarcasm heavy in his tone. "Still just fifteen."_

 _Zack rolled his eyes and took the glass from Cloud's hand, chucking it into a nearby trash can. "Come on," he said, forcibly dragging Cloud toward the exit._

 _"Whoa, wait. Where are we going?" Cloud asked._

 _"Away from here," Zack said casually._

 _Cloud put on the brakes. "Zack, I can't. I'm not allowed to be off campus this late at night."_

 _Zack scoffed. "You said you're not re-enrolling. So you're no longer a cadet. You can go anywhere you damn well please."_

 _He relented and let Zack pull him out into the cool night air. They walked along in silence for a few minutes, which was actually pretty difficult for Zack, but he wanted Cloud to be the one to break it. Eventually, he did._

 _"So, are you gonna tell me where we're going?"_

 _Zack smiled mysteriously. "Somewhere fun." They turned into Sector 6 and entered the part known as Wall Market._

 _Cloud's suspicions were rising. When they came within sight of the Honeybee Inn, he stopped walking. "Zack! They're not gonna let me in! I don't even look close to 18!"_

 _That was when he taught Cloud that a big ass sword and a glint of mako in your eye answered a lot of questions. The bouncer didn't even give Cloud a second glance._

 _As they stepped into the lounge, Cloud looked around at everything with wide eyes. They found a table and Zack signaled to a waitress dressed in a ridiculous honey bee costume. She strutted over, wiggling her little stinger._

 _"Zack!" She exclaimed. "Well, ain't this my luck. I haven't seen you in ages, and when you finally show up I'm stuck in the lounge all shift. I guess it's not my night, huh?" She actually looked disappointed._

 _Zack shrugged. "I'll stay here and keep you company, Sharla. Get us a couple of my usual to start. My friend here wants to visit Lola, though."_

 _The waitress's eyes got huge as she took in Cloud. "Oh, you are just adorable! Lola's gonna love you!" she squealed. She wiggled off to fill their order._

 _By the time Cloud figured out what he meant, she was long gone. "Zack! What are you doing? I can't do that!" he hissed._

 _Zack leaned back, tipping his chair onto its back legs. "Ok, if you don't want to," he said casually. "Just hang out and drink with me then. The drinks are way overpriced, but the scenery is worth it," he grinned. He wasn't worried. He'd change his mind before the end of the night._

 _Cloud relaxed a bit, turning to watch the stage as six honey bees trotted onstage and started dancing. Sharla returned with their drinks and set them in front of the boys. Cloud didn't even notice._

 _Sharla bumped Zack's shoulder with her hip. "Your friend a SOLDIER too?" she asked. "Lola's getting excited."_

 _"Not yet," Zack responded. "Listen, can you tell Lola to hold off for now? He's not quite ready yet."_

 _Cloud reached blindly for his drink and took a big swallow. He grimaced, but didn't take his eyes off the stage._

 _Sharla snickered. "He will be soon enough. I'll let Lola know."_

 _She wiggled off again, and Zack sat back to enjoy the show. The dancers' costumes must have had some kind of magic on them, as they became more sheer as the performance went on. Cloud took two more big gulps, and Zack grinned at his flustered expression. They used those stingers in some very creative ways._

Zack set his phone down on the nightstand. That night felt like a thousand years ago now. The infusion had its claws deep in his consciousness, and he was fighting to stay awake. Yawning, he nestled into his pillow and let sleep pull him under.

* * *

Cloud didn't like being forced to lie down and be pushed in the gurney like a damn baby carriage – he felt perfectly fine, thank you very much – but the guy with the black hair had told him they were taking him to see Zack, so he tolerated it.

He stared up at the cement ceiling as they rolled along. The large woman pushing the cart was giving him the eye, as if she expected him to jump off and run at any moment. Not that it hadn't crossed his mind, but he did think he remembered seeing Zack recently. He was willing to wait and see before acting rashly.

 _Blip-blip._

The gurney pushed through a door, and then he was practically mauled by an overexcited animal that turned out to be none other than Zack Fair. With a grin splitting his face, Cloud swung his feet over the side and stood, only to be hauled backwards by the strings of his gown. The back of his legs hit the edge of a bed and he tumbled onto it.

Wendy had untied the strings with that yank, so she grabbed the front and yanked it forward as soon as he fell back. "What the hell, lady!" he exclaimed.

"Damn, Wendy, do you have to be so rough all the time?" Zack asked mildly, crossing his arms. "I thought he just got out of the tank."

"Yeah," Wendy said, deadpan. She held the wet gown in her hand. "That's why I made sure he got on the bed and didn't hurt himself."

Cloud stared at her, unsure if she was joking or not. With a slight smirk, she tossed the wet gown in the bin and walked out, leaving him standing there naked.

Zack looked over and gave a short laugh. "Yeah, she did that to me, too." He walked over to the corner cupboard and dug through it. "I'll get you some scrubs right away. They're way better than the ass-hanging-out-gown." He tossed him a pair of yellow scrubs in his size.

"Thanks," Cloud said as he caught them and began getting dressed. He felt only a slight twinge in his back when he leaned forward to pull the pants over his legs, which made no sense. The fact that he was alive at all didn't make sense, if his memory could be believed. "So, where are we, Zack? What's going on?" He sat back down on the bed, gripping the edge with his hands.

Zack sat on his own bed and crossed his legs in front of him. "Near as I can tell, we're in some kind of Shinra facility. Doc called it a hospital, but I don't think it is. They're doing some kind of experimental procedure on us."

Cloud looked troubled. "I don't want to be experimented on."

Zack sighed. "Yeah, I know. Doesn't seem like we have a choice." He leaned against the wall and shrugged. "They've been treating me ok, though. And, you know, both of us came out of a fight with Sephiroth in one piece, so there's that."

Cloud pulled his feet up onto the bed. They were still bare, like Zack's, but it was comfortably warm in there. "So did you already get debriefed?" He tried not to let on how nervous he was about that question – how much Zack may or may not have revealed about his role in it.

But Zack shook his head. "No. And it's really weird. I haven't been able to talk to anyone from Shinra except Professor Hojo, and he's not exactly forthcoming."

"Hojo?" Cloud asked.

"Yeah. I've heard of him before. He has something to do with the mako procedures we went through for SOLDIER, so at least I know he's with Shinra. He just says there are cameras in the reactor and Lazard knows everything he needs to know."

"Oh." Cloud couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing for him. His fight with Sephiroth was mostly a blur of red, but he thought he might have been the one that attacked first.

 _Blip-blip._

Cloud tensed as he looked toward the door. A small, balding man with tiny glasses perched on his nose entered the room, holding a clipboard in one hand. He gave Zack a quick nod before extending his free hand toward Cloud.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Hyde," he said as Cloud tentatively grasped his hand. "How are you feeling?"

Zack leaned back against the wall, looking relaxed, so Cloud let himself take it down a notch, too.

"I feel pretty good, actually. I thought I was…" he trailed off, gingerly touching the slash on his chest.

"Yes, you were quite badly injured. I patched you up," he said, matter-of-factly.

"Oh. Uh, thanks," Cloud said awkwardly.

Hyde pulled out the blood pressure machine from above Zack's bed and pushed up the sleeve of Cloud's scrub top. For the first time, Cloud noticed the flexible mesh attached to his arm. Instinctively he reached over to pull at it, but the doctor slapped his hand.

"Leave that alone, child."

Cloud was a little annoyed at being called a child, and even more than a little at being _treated_ like one, but he swallowed it back down. "What is that?" he asked as the cuff was wrapped around his arm.

"It's for the mako tanks," Zack supplied. "Helps you breathe and stuff."

The doctor looked annoyed at his simplified explanation. He must have had a hand in the design; he certainly seemed proud of the technology. "Yes, basically. It absorbs the oxygen from the solution, among other things, and delivers it to your bloodstream. It also pulls the excess CO2 from your blood."

"Is that why we can't move in there?" he asked. "So we don't try to breathe?"

"Yes," the doctor said, looking pleased that he had caught on so quickly.

"But isn't breathing only involuntary when the body is in need of oxygen? And it shouldn't ever need oxygen if we're getting enough through the filter things, right?"

The pleased look disappeared. "For the most part, but sometimes the body thinks it needs it sooner than it actually does. Now please stop asking questions, boy. I need to examine you."

Cloud was a little put off by his sudden dismissal, but he let the doctor go through the motions. He answered questions about his name and rank, birth date, the company he worked for, his mother's name, and the current date. He wasn't entirely certain on that last one, but it must have been close enough, because the doctor seemed satisfied.

Once the examination was finished, the doctor started putting away the equipment. "Everything seems fine to me. We're going to start your baseline testing now."

"What are we testing?" Cloud asked cautiously.

"Various things," Dr. Hyde said vaguely. "Nothing terrible, although it does go much easier if you go along with it. Right, Zack?"

"Yeah, sure," Zack said.

"Ok," Cloud said hesitantly. "So what now?"

"Now, an orderly will come to escort you to the fitness room." Without waiting for further questions, Dr. Hyde swept out of the room, leaving them alone again.

Cloud looked over at Zack. "What exactly are the baseline tests?"

"Nothing too bad," Zack said with a shrug. "It's not much different than the stuff they do at the Academy."

At first, it _was_ a lot like the tests at the Academy: endurance, strength, mental acuity. But on the fourth day of his testing, things got more intense. He was led down a long hallway into an octagonal room. The walls and floor were made of a reflective metal that was slightly disorienting, although his bare feet seemed to grip it extremely well. The solid wall changed to a glass pane ten feet above the ground. Behind the glass seemed to be some kind of viewing area. There was an unfamiliar man standing there in a white lab coat, watching him intensely. He had brown hair pulled back into a greasy ponytail and wore wire-rimmed glasses.

Cloud was watching the man behind the glass so intently that he didn't even notice the giant mechanical beast that fell from the ceiling until it was almost on top of him.

"Wha!" Cloud rolled out of the way, barely avoiding being squashed into the shiny metallic floor.

The machine had four legs that hinged in the middle and the top. The "body" on top of the legs was also metal, shaped like a melting flan. A sharp circular blade slid in a vertical track around the body, spinning like a table saw.

Cloud looked around for some kind of weapon to use as the machine stomped toward him, but there was nothing else in the room. He was in a pair of scrubs with no pockets and bare feet. He tensed as it approached, dodging the whirling blade and rolling to the side once it got close enough. The machine was slow to turn around, buying him a few seconds to get a better look at his surroundings, but it could move fast once it was turned.

He knew he had to use its slow cornering ability if he wanted to continue dodging it, but after a dozen times leaping and dodging, he wondered what he was supposed to be doing. He would get fatigued if he had to do much more of this, and he had no idea what kind of capacity the machine had. After another dodge roll, he glanced up at the glass, looking for some guidance. The man didn't give any sign of acknowledgement at all. He just stood watching with his hands clasped behind his back.

Cloud threw up his arms, trying to ask for some instructions. He shouldn't have let himself get distracted. The circular blade came around, gouging a long scratch on his shoulder and down his arm. Somehow the skin of his arm was shredded, but the filter was completely untouched. He had a moment to wonder what kind of material it was made from, but the machine didn't give him much time to ponder it. He dodged to the side and rolled behind one of the front legs. The cut on his arm stung as it pressed against the ground, leaving behind a big splotch of blood.

When the mechanical leg came down on the spot of blood it slid a few inches. Cloud was starting to slow down, and he was nicked by the blade the next two times he tried to dodge. More blood was dripping on the floor. As the mechanical leg slipped on the larger spot, he got an idea. He worked in a small circle, letting his wounds bleed freely in that space.

He had the machine almost turning in circles, and he spread the slippery blood around with his feet, creating a vivid red skating rink. It interfered with the grip of his feet, too, but Cloud was a country boy raised in the mountains. He knew how to work _with_ ice instead of _against_ it. When he had the blood smeared enough to be underneath all four of the machine's legs, he dove directly underneath the machine and slid on his back. It was a risky move, and he paid for it. The blade sliced up the side of his face, creating a deep gash that barely missed his eye.

It worked, though. The machine tried to turn, slipped on the slick floor, and after several drastic adjustments to try to establish balance, its legs slid out in all four directions. It landed on its body with a _thud_ , and the whirling blade spun straight into the metallic floor. It made a horrible grinding noise as it tried to keep going, but whatever the floor was made of was much tougher than the blade.

Cloud skated over and used his momentum to jump on top of the body. The machine was still trying to regain its footing, but it was no use. Its legs slid every time it managed to bring them up at all. As he suspected, a control panel was set into the top of the body. He smashed it with his fist, over and over until the panel had loosened. He ripped off the face of the panel to expose the wiring and ripped out a handful. He could have simply turned it off, but he had no intention of fighting the thing again. The machine stopped moving. Sparks flew from the panel and electricity jumped dangerously. He slid down the rounded side of the machine's body and landed on the floor, almost losing his own balance on the slippery surface.

He looked up to the window for some kind of signal from the man in the white coat, but he was gone. A moment later, a smooth sliding sound accompanied an opening in the wall that widened into a door. The man he had seen behind the glass entered, looking down his nose at Cloud. He was accompanied by a freckled redhead girl who carried a clipboard and looked excited to be alive. Two bulky-looking orderlies in green scrubs followed behind them.

"I'll ask you not to damage my property next time," he said in a scratchy voice that grated against Cloud's nerves.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" he exclaimed. "That thing would've killed me!"

The man waved away his concerns. "G2-6 rarely kills anyone. I shut it down before it gets that far."

Cloud blinked. "Rarely?"

"Anyway, I suppose you did well enough to earn your healing session in the mako tank. As long as you perform well enough, you will be allowed to use that when you are injured."

Cloud started to back away. "Wait a minute, is this going to be some kind of regular thing? You're just going to throw me in here defenseless against something that's trying to kill me?"

"Well it won't be the same thing," the man said in his grating voice. "They will have different abilities, and I do try to remedy any weaknesses that are revealed in an octo-room session. For instance, your slippery blood trick won't work again."

Cloud took an angry step toward the man. Two iron grips clamped onto his arms, holding him back. "Are you insane?!" he seethed.

The man looked down at him with distaste. "Are you always so whiny, boy? If so, I won't be granting you an audience after your sessions." He turned away and walked toward the door. The orderlies prevented him from following, but the girl stayed back for a moment.

"That was ingenious," she whispered, as if he weren't standing in a spreading pool of his own blood.

Cloud looked at her incredulously. "Are you actually ok with this? What he's doing?"

"Lissa!" the man snapped. "Don't speak to the specimen."

 _What did he just call me?_

Lissa gave him one last elated grin and trotted after the man in the lab coat. The orderlies forcibly pulled him forward. Cloud stumbled once and then got his feet underneath him. He walked to the mako tank under his own power, although he was starting to feel a little weak. He wondered how much blood he'd actually lost. It didn't seem like it would be something he could repeat more than a few times without seriously endangering his health.

When they reached the tank room, he walked up the two steps onto the platform. If he hadn't known that she would be waiting for him in the gray place, he might have had some trouble being voluntarily enclosed in that claustrophobic tube. He turned to face the front as the glass slid closed. A hissing sound grew slowly louder until a warm mist sprayed down over his head. He could feel it beginning to pool around his feet. He glanced down and grimaced at the liquid filling the tank. His blood was being mixed with the fluid, tinting it to a dark brownish-yellow.

Soon it became obvious that the things stuck to his arms and legs were pulling in enough of the fluid from the shower. He felt no urge to breathe and his muscles locked in place. The glossy scene in front of him began to fade away.

"Welcome back, my love," she purred.

Cloud sighed happily and lay back on the invisible ground. "I'm so glad you're here, Mother," he said. "There's something really strange going on in that place. I don't trust those guys in the white coats."

"Forget them," she said softly. "You only have a short time with me today." Something silky glided over his forehead, although he saw nothing in the gray.

He felt his muscles relax into glorious warmth. Whatever she was doing felt wonderful. He let his eyes drift closed, and the next thing he knew, he was staring through a wavering yellow film. He could just barely make out the mop of black hair and green eyes until the liquid dropped below his eye level. He reminded himself that he didn't need to breathe and he would be able to move soon. Those reassurances lowered his anxiety slightly, but it was still a terribly uncomfortable feeling.

He fell forward when the glass slid open, but this time there was no burly woman to catch him. Kyle simply stood back and let him catch himself on the floor. He landed on his hands and knees on a surprisingly soft mat.

Cloud blinked and looked up at Kyle. "How long have I been in there?" he asked.

"Only a few hours," Kyle said. "Your wounds were all superficial. It doesn't take long."

An orderly he hadn't noticed standing there hauled him up by his arm. It was one of the beefier green-scrub guys again. He watched Cloud closely, but he let him walk himself back to the room he shared with Zack.

 _Blip-blip._

The orderly opened the door for Cloud, but didn't enter. Cloud walked in and heard the door shut securely behind him. He glanced around the small room, finding it empty. Zack must have been off getting some kind of test or treatment.

Cloud shivered. He was still wet and slightly sticky from the tank, and he remembered how the dried mako had felt in his hair last time. A shower sounded really great. He dug in the cupboard behind the door for some clean scrubs before making his way to the bathroom.

He turned the shower on hot and stepped in front of the mirror to see how badly that gash on his face was going to scar. He leaned closer, unable to believe what he was seeing. There was _nothing_. Not even a scratch or residual redness. His skin was clear and unblemished. He reached his hand up to touch it. Maybe he was overreacting about the octo-room. The cuts had hurt at the time, but if he was healed in a matter of hours, was it really such a big deal? The man in the lab coat had said that he would stop the machine before things got out of control.

The mirror was beginning to fog up, so he stripped off his wet scrubs and stepped into the shower. Like Zack had said, it was nothing too bad. He just had to get used to it.

By the time he exited the bathroom, Zack was back. "Hey!" he said cheerfully. "You didn't steal all the hot water, did you?"

"Uhm…I'm not really sure," Cloud responded, rubbing a towel against his wet hair. It _had_ been a pretty long shower.

Zack started toward the bathroom anyway, stripping his clothes off as he went. "Eh, it doesn't matter. That was a hell of a workout. I could go for a cold one anyway."

Cloud watched as he disappeared into the bathroom. So Zack hadn't gone into the mako tank that day. Thinking back over the week, he couldn't remember his friend ever returning to their room looking like a drowned rat, although their schedules didn't align, so he wasn't always there when Zack returned. He probably just showered before Cloud came back.

Zack reappeared 10 minutes later underneath a belch of steam from the bathroom, wearing a towel around his waist. Cloud stared at the raised scar on his chest. Like his own Mesamune scar, it wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been, but it didn't look like it had tickled. "How long do you think we were in the tank when we first got here?" he asked.

"Dunno," Zack said with a shrug. "You were in there two weeks after I got out, so maybe another week before that?" He stretched out on his bed without bothering to find a clean pair of scrubs. "Hey, you remember that time we went to the Honeybee in Sector 6?"

Cloud laughed and sat down on his bed, crossing his legs in front of him, facing Zack. "Yeah, not really something I can forget."

Zack turned his head to look at him. "You remember the lovely Lola?"

Cloud's face flamed red. "Also not really something I can forget."

Zack laughed loudly. "Oh gods, Cloud, the next day you were so hilarious!"

"I'm glad you found it funny," he muttered, leaning back against the wall.

"You were so shy! I mean, you wouldn't give me any details. I paid for it, man! It's the least you owe me."

Cloud glanced around the room. "Hey, do you have the remote? Let's watch something."

Zack threw a pillow, which Cloud caught just before it nailed him in the face. "Quit trying to change the subject! Come on, that was like a year ago. You can't still be that embarrassed about it."

"We can find an action movie or something. I'm in the mood for something violent and mindless."

"Cloud! Would you stop?" Zack laughed. "Seriously, was Lola your first?"

Cloud sighed and let his head fall back against the wall. "Yeah. She was. Now can we please talk about something else?"

"No way!" Zack said. "I asked for details. Come _on,_ buddy! I haven't had any excitement for months!"

"You saw Aerith just before we left on this trip," Cloud said, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, but there wasn't time. Pleeeeeease indulge me," Zack begged.

"There's really not much to say," Cloud said awkwardly.

"You liked her though, right? I mean, Lola's really gentle. I knew you'd like her."

"Sure," Cloud shrugged. "She was nice."

"Nice?" Zack laughed. "Honeybee girls aren't _nice_."

"She was, though," Cloud said, leaning his elbows on the pillow in his lap. "She was sweet. It was just…uh…short. Like, really short." Zack threw back his head and laughed. Cloud whipped the pillow back at him. "You're not really encouraging me to give you _details_ in the future."

Zack stifled his laughing with an effort. "No, I'm sorry. I mean, it was your first time, you were young. It happens to everyone. To…different degrees."

Cloud scoffed and laid back on the bed. " _Now_ can we talk about something else?"

"No, no, no. We can't leave it like that. You had other encounters after Lola, right?"

Cloud rubbed his eyes. They felt gritty and sore. He wondered if that was a side effect of the tank. "Yeah. There were others."

"So tell me about one of those. Tell me about one where you were such a stud that she screamed your name. Tell me how you rocked her world."

Cloud threw an arm over his eyes. "Gods, Zack, stop!"

Zack sat up to look at him. "You're thinking of it right now, aren't you? Your face is turning so red! Oh my god, it's adorable!"

 _Blip-blip._

Cloud was saved any further torment by the entrance of a lab tech in blue scrubs. She looked normal enough, unlike the green-scrub orderlies that looked like they ate steroids for breakfast. She had long brown hair, pulled back in a loose plait that trailed down her back.

"I need to get some blood from you, Zack," she said, lifting her little tray of tubes.

Pain streaked across Cloud's chest. Her hair reminded him so much of Tifa. He'd had more than a few fantasies involving her, especially after the first day they arrived in Nibelheim to investigate the reactors. She certainly didn't look the same as the 13-year-old girl he'd made the promise to.

Cloud pulled back the sheets on his bed and hastily slid under the covers, turning his back to Zack and the giggly technician. He shoved the corner of his pillow in his mouth and bit down, willing himself to be quiet as the anguish washed over him. _You'll come save me, right?_ Yeah, he'd done a great job keeping that promise, hadn't he? She was barely alive when he found her on the reactor floor. There was nothing he could do for her. The rage that ripped through him had driven him to pick up that sword and shove it through Sephiroth's back, but it didn't matter anymore. Not for Tifa.

That was one fantasy that would never come true.

* * *

The next day, the boys were in for a surprise. They were actually going somewhere together. A couple of the green-scrub orderlies stood just inside the door to their room, wearing identical blank expressions. One had a scruffy black beard that blended with his long black hair. The other was clean-shaven with close-cropped brown hair on his head.

"Time to go," the scruffy one announced to the room at large.

Zack and Cloud glanced at each other. "Who are you talking to?" Zack asked.

"Both of you," the same orderly said.

Two pairs of raised eyebrows looked back at him. "Really? Where are we going?" Cloud asked.

"Octo-room. Come on, let's move." The boys glanced back at each other. Zack shrugged, and they both got up to be escorted down the hall.

"I wonder what the Octo-room is," Zack mused as they walked down the empty corridor.

"You've never been there?" Cloud asked.

"No…you have? Already? You've only been out for like 5 days."

"Yeah," Cloud said, frowning. "It's like an arena where some machine is dropped in to kick your ass."

"What?!" Zack gaped at him, just as they arrived outside of the doors. The lines of the doorway were visible from the outside, but Cloud knew that they were indistinguishable from the walls when he was inside.

The doors slid open and the orderlies stood to the sides like a pair of sentries. The boys entered between them, scanning the room and looking for any possible advantages or weapons they could use. Like the previous day, there were none, but Cloud wasn't nearly as apprehensive this time. Zack was there. Zack could defeat anything.

They walked to the center of the arena and waited for their opponent to drop in. After a few minutes of silence, an impatient voice screeched over the speaker. "What are you waiting for? Fight!"

They looked around again. "What the hell are we supposed to fight, Hojo?" Zack yelled back. It hadn't even occurred to Cloud that they might be able to hear him in the observation deck.

 _That asshole is Hojo? He's the one in charge here? That's just brilliant,_ Cloud thought bitterly.

"Each other!" Hojo grated.

Zack and Cloud met eyes again. "Uh…a spar? With no weapons?" Zack suggested.

Cloud shrugged. "I guess so." He put his fists up and stabilized himself with a wide, bent-knee stance.

Zack mirrored him and grinned. "Alright, let's go."

Zack was like poetry in motion with a sword in his hand, but Cloud was far more experienced in scrapping. He was quick, good at dodging and parrying, and Zack was having a hard time hitting him. "Dude, you're telegraphing every move," Cloud laughed. He showed him a couple of examples. "See, when you wind up like this, I can always tell what your next move will be." It felt weird to be the one teaching. Zack had always been the leader in their dynamic.

"Don't _teach_ him, you imbecile!" Hojo said irritably over the speakers. "You're supposed to be trying to incapacitate each other!"

Zack rolled his eyes, but his back was turned to Hojo. Admittedly, he was intentionally holding back his full speed. If he _did_ land a punch, he didn't want to knock him out. His grin was an open challenge to Cloud. "All right, show me how it's done, bitch. Hit me when I'm not—"

Cloud punched him in the jaw, hard and fast. It startled Zack more than anything, and he stumbled back a few steps. He couldn't be seriously hurt by anything Cloud could do without a weapon, but that didn't mean he couldn't be taken by surprise. Before Zack could even understand what had happened, Cloud hooked a leg around his ankle and pulled, dropping him to the ground on his back.

Cloud squatted down by his dazed friend. "That's how it's done, _bitch_ ," he said with a grin.

Zack sat up, rubbing his head. "Well damn, kid. You're—"

"What are you doing?" Hojo's irritating voice came back over the speakers. "You're not supposed to stop and chat! Take him out!"

Cloud gave an incredulous look in the general direction of the observation deck. "Does he seriously think we're gonna try to kill each other?" he asked Zack in an undertone. He stood and held out his hand to pull Zack to his feet.

The door in the wall slid open, and Hojo stomped out to the floor. "What is wrong with you two? You're not even trying!"

Zack put his hands on his hips and turned to face Hojo. "You're right. We're not. Why the hell would we want to hurt each other?"

Hojo's eyes bulged. "You need more motivation? Fine," he snapped. "Take Zack back to his room," he said to the orderlies who had come in behind him. "We'll give the young one some motivation."

Zack's eyes narrowed. "Wait, what do you mean? What are you doing?" He took a protective step toward Cloud, but the orderlies held him from moving any further.

Cloud shook his head at Zack. "It's fine, Zack. Just go back to our room." He expected more of the same from yesterday. It would hurt for a while, but then he would get to see _her_ again and be healed in a few hours.

Zack stared at him for a moment longer, measuring his sincerity. Cloud nodded again. "Just go."

Hesitantly, Zack allowed himself to be pulled out. Hojo followed behind them, not bothering to say anything else to Cloud. Seconds after the door slid closed behind him, the hole in the ceiling opened, dropping something large and heavy behind him.

* * *

Zack sprawled out on the floor, anxious for Cloud to return. He hadn't been the least bit reassured when he left him behind in the Octo-room, but his brief test of the orderlies' strength had been surprisingly firm. Upon closer inspection, he had identified a faint mako gleam in their eyes.

He was starting to get a bad feeling about this place. What did Professor Hojo mean about giving Cloud some motivation? Zack forced himself to relax. He felt almost compulsively protective over Cloud, but Cloud had told him over and over to stop. He was strong and capable. There was no reason to worry about him so much.

Zack was staring blankly at the ceiling when something new caught his eye. A camera was mounted in the corner. He sat up fast. That hadn't been there before. If it had, he never would have gotten away with knocking out Dr. Hyde. On the other hand, if they were being watched now, at least he wouldn't have to worry about being unable to get anyone's attention if something happened to Cloud.

He checked the rest of the room. There was nothing obviously out of place, but when he opened the cupboard above his bed, he found it empty. The medical equipment they had been storing there was gone. He checked the cupboard behind the door. There was one pair of clean scrubs in each of their sizes, but nothing else.

Scowling, Zack walked into the bathroom. There were exactly 2 towels, 1 small bottle of soap, and 1 of shampoo. What did those guys think they would be doing if they had more soap than they needed? Then Zack smirked. He had done damage with a lot less than that before. After examining every remaining nook and cranny of the room, he returned to his bed and flopped down. He put his arms behind his head and stared at the camera in the corner. What had changed? Why did they suddenly need constant supervision? Why did they need to remove anything that could be used as a weapon?

In addition to worrying about Cloud's "motivation", he was anxious for him to return so that he could talk to him about their new room decorations, and Zack was really no good at waiting. Deciding that he needed to distract himself for a while, he reached over to the nightstand and picked up the remote. They had a selection of movies and shows to stream, but there weren't any kind of news programs to be found. Zack scrolled until he found a television series that looked interesting and started it up.

He was eight episodes in by the time his eyelids started to droop. It was incredibly late, and Cloud still hadn't returned. He got up and paced around the room for a while until he felt alert enough to stay awake for a while longer. By 3 AM, he had given up hope of them coming back that night, and there definitely wouldn't be any orderlies coming from which he could pry information.

He decided that he just needed to go to sleep. If Cloud wasn't there in the morning, Hojo was going to have some serious questions to answer.

* * *

Cloud could no longer scream. He felt like his ribs had been crushed. He lay on the floor, waiting for the mallet to come around to crush his head. His vision blurred as it lifted the mallet straight above him, ready for the final vertical smash.

Then it stopped. He really wished it hadn't.

His leg was crushed to a pulp. His ribs were broken into shards that were probably already digging into his internal organs. It was excruciating. _Mother! Help me!_ he cried out in his mind.

The voice he heard was not Mother's, though. It was the reedy, obnoxious voice of Professor Hojo as he stood over him, looking down. He was shaking his head sadly. "Not a very good way to end your baseline week. Disappointing." Cloud drew in shallow breaths, but every one sent a dagger of pain through him. "You really haven't earned treatment in the mako tank today, but I'm afraid you have some nasty internal bleeding there." He nudged Cloud's ribs with his foot, sending another cascade of pain rippling through his body. "Well, we can't have you dying yet, so I suppose I have no choice. But you haven't earned a sedative for the trip down to the mako room," he said, grinning maliciously.

The machine rolled backwards, releasing his leg. The pain multiplied as blood pushed its way through the damaged limb. "Call Wendy to come get him," Hojo said to someone standing nearby. He leaned down to address Cloud again. "Try harder next time, hm?"

* * *

 _Blip-blip._

"Good morning, Zack," Dr. Hyde announced as he came in. "Didn't sleep well last night?"

Zack raised his head blearily. "Ugh. No. Where is Cloud? Why didn't he come back last night?"

"Are we going to start this again?" Dr. Hyde asked, his tone laced with disapproval.

"Yeah, we are, if you're going to start keeping secrets from me again!"

Dr. Hyde sighed. "Fine. He asked to have a separate room last night."

"What?" Zack sat up. "Why?"

"I don't know," Hyde said with a shrug. "Maybe he just needed some time to himself. Don't take this the wrong way, but you can be a bit… _intense_ sometimes." The doctor set down the little black bag he was carrying and pulled out a blood pressure cuff. "Just sit back and relax, please. I need to get your vitals before breakfast."

Zack was too stunned to argue. It wasn't that he didn't realize he could be a little hyper, but Cloud should have been more than used to it by now. _Did I say something to piss him off? I don't remember anything. He seemed fine yesterday, but he didn't hesitate to send me back to the room, either. Damn it, he always bottles up shit like that. Why can't he just tell me if something's bothering him?_

Two days passed before Cloud was finally returned to the room, much more subdued than the last time he'd been there.

"Hey, buddy," Zack said, looking up with a smile. "Where have you been?" He wasn't sure if he trusted Hyde's word, so he planned to get it straight from Cloud before drawing any conclusions.

Cloud blinked and looked away. "I was just…uh…they wanted to observe me when I was sleeping or something. So I just slept somewhere else."

Zack's smile faltered. "What about during the day? I thought they'd send you back here."

Cloud busied himself straightening imaginary wrinkles on his bed. "Yeah. They were just doing more baseline testing and stuff during the day." He scratched his head. "I'm gonna go take a shower," he said without looking up. He turned and shuffled toward the bathroom.

Zack didn't know what to think. Cloud was a terrible liar. Maybe that meant that Hyde was telling the truth after all. Maybe Cloud _was_ just sick of him. The shower was obviously just his way of getting out of talking to Zack. His hair was still wet from the shower he took before he came over. _Fine,_ he thought. _If he wants his space, he can have his fucking space._


	4. Anger and Regret

**I feel like he can see me. His eyes are so intense. I know it's just the sheen of mako, but it's unnerving. If he could see me, if he knew I was watching this happen to him, would he hate me? It's not as if I can do anything about it. I know this, but does he? I can't stand the thought of him hating me.**

 **Hojo and Hyde are having one of their evening chats again. They sit in their cushy wingback chairs and brainstorm how they can force a grown man to submit to all of their tests and trials without question. They sip from the little crystal glasses in their hands and debate how to make a teenager feel terrified enough to show them something extraordinary. They puff on their overpriced cigars and scheme how to destroy a friendship.**

 **"I don't know why you insist on keeping up this charade of treating them like patients," Hojo says, crossing one leg over the other.**

 **"It worked for Sephiroth," Hyde reminds him. "Genesis and Angeal, too."**

 **"They were trained to accept it as children," Hojo says dismissively, waving the hand holding the cigar. A trail of smoke follows his motions. "These two seem to think that they have some kind of rights in here. It's absurd."**

 **Dr. Hyde lazily swirls around the dark liquid in his glass. "I still think it's best to let them believe they're willing participants. It's so much easier if they go along with everything."**

 **Professor Hojo leans forward in his chair, his eyes piercing Hyde. "Is it really, Klaus? Or are you developing a soft spot for these boys?"**

 **"Of course not," Dr. Hyde scoffs, but I think Hojo may be right. Now that I've been able to watch them, I can see why. Zack is irresistibly friendly and engaging. Cloud is quiet and thoughtful, intriguing in his own way.**

 **Hojo raises one thin brow. "If we break them, they'll be just as compliant. It worked for the rest of the residents."**

 **"Perhaps," Hyde says, "but only because their will was so weak. Besides, I doubt you will see the reaction you're hoping for from the boy if his spirit is broken."**

 **Hojo ponders that for a moment. "Fine. We'll try it your way for now, but if it doesn't work, I _will_ take control over these decisions myself." He takes a leisurely puff on his cigar. "Speaking of the boy, his performance on Friday was rather dismal. Fearing for his life doesn't seem to trigger the reaction as you posited."**

 **Dr. Hyde shrugs, unconcerned. "Maybe you didn't trigger the right fear. Being immobilized seems to be especially trying for him. As long as he can move, he still has some control over the situation."**

 **Professor Hojo taps his fingers on the arm of his chair. "Yes, we can try that next. But first, I need to measure his true ability against Zack. Why do they refuse to fight each other?"**

 **Dr. Hyde laughs out loud. "They're _friends_ , Horace. Is there no one you wouldn't attack to prove your superiority?"**

 **Hojo frowns, as if confused. "Of course not. Why should I allow anyone to best me?"**

 **"Yes, I thought you might see it that way," Dr. Hyde says, shaking his head. He drains his glass and sets it down on the table between them. He tents his fingers in front of him, resembling the evil scientist usually played by Hojo. "So I planted the first seed of distrust between them. Some kind of chemical interference may be required to give the final push, but it's important that their anger be directed toward each other, or we may well find ourselves as the target of their combined rage."**

 **A smirk slides across Professor Hojo's face. "What exactly was this first seed, Klaus?"**

 **Dr. Hyde shrugs and reclines in his chair, looking supremely pleased with himself. "I merely suggested that Zack might feel guilty for leaving the boy in the octo-room if he knew the extent of his injuries and how much time he'd spent in the mako tank." He chuckled, a deceptively gentle sound. "The boy actually _begged_ me not to tell Zack. I'm quite certain that Zack will see through him and come to the wrong conclusion."**

 **Hojo doesn't look all that impressed. "Really. That's it?"**

 **"That's only the beginning. They may need some more encouragement, but eventually their relationship will self-destruct. _Then_ you will be able to see the full extent of their abilities."**

 **Professor Hojo appears to reconsider. "Alright. I have something to look forward to, then."**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: Anger and Regret**

* * *

Cloud couldn't figure out what he had done to upset Zack. He had been acting cold ever since Cloud had come back on Sunday evening. He wasn't exactly being _mean_ , just distant. If Cloud asked him something, he responded with a short answer and then went back to whatever he was doing on his phone. He didn't initiate a single conversation the entire day. If it had been someone else, it might have been normal behavior. But for Zack to sit and do something quietly when there was someone to talk to, especially Cloud? No. Something was definitely wrong.

They had both started on their infusions that morning. Cloud felt a stirring of irritation as he watched Zack clicking away on his phone. He had already filled him in on their lack of connectivity in the building, so he knew he wasn't talking to anyone. Cloud's phone had apparently been smashed during his fight with Sephiroth, so he didn't even have anything to do to pass the time.

"Hey, you want to watch something?" he asked Zack hopefully.

Zack's eyes flickered up from his phone for just a moment before being drawn back down. "Not really."

"Well can you at least give me the remote so _I_ can watch something?" he asked irritably.

Zack sighed like he was being forced to abandon a very important task. He reached over to the nightstand and picked up the remote, and then flung it at Cloud. Cloud reacted just in time to prevent it from smashing his nose. "Dude! What the hell?"

Zack's eyes slowly moved up to Cloud's. "Something wrong?" he asked innocently. "You wanted the remote, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but I didn't want it embedded in my face!" he snarled.

Zack shrugged and went back to his phone. "Sorry. I'm not used to dealing with people with such slow reactions."

Cloud's eyes narrowed as he looked at his friend. He actually had pretty good reactions, but they were still unenhanced human speed reactions, which Zack knew perfectly well. Besides, Zack may have spent a lot of time with some of the other SOLDIERS in training, but virtually all of their mutual free time was spent together. Cloud's reaction time had never been an issue. He bored a hole into his friend's head with his eyes, but Zack never looked up. Eventually, Cloud sighed and turned on the TV.

Things only got worse as the week went on. Zack's little jabs became even less subtle, and Cloud was snapping at him almost constantly. An endless current of anger burned inside of him, flaring up anytime he heard Zack's voice.

"Dude, did you use the last of the shampoo?" Zack demanded, storming out of the bathroom, still wet from the shower. Drooping black hair clung to the sides of his face, and rivulets of water ran down sharply delineated muscle.

Cloud was sprawled out on his stomach on the bed, reading a magazine. He looked up at Zack's outburst. "I guess. All we got is that tiny little bottle."

Zack scoffed loudly. "Thanks a lot. You could've at least told one of the orderlies so we could get some more."

The current of irritation flared up in him again. "Jeez, I'm sorry. I forgot about it." He looked back down at the magazine. Zack stomped back to the bathroom only to return a minute later. Cloud ignored him, keeping his eyes glued to the magazine until a sharp pain in his head made him jerk back up. He sat up, holding a hand to his head. Zack had hurled the empty shampoo bottle at him.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Cloud demanded.

"Are you stupid?" Zack retorted. "I just told you what was wrong with me!"

"What do you want me to do about it, Zack?" Cloud exploded. "I'll ask them for more next time they come in, but I really can't help you right now."

"Gah!" Zack made a sound of frustration and stormed back into the bathroom, slamming the door shut.

The next day, Cloud got out of the shower to find that there were no towels in the bathroom. Zack must have hidden them somewhere. _What a stupid, childish thing to do._ Zack wasn't even in the room at the moment, so Cloud had no idea where he'd put them.

His wet footsteps left a trail straight to Zack's bed. Zack's sheets would have to be his towel, then.

 _Blip-blip._

The brunette with the Tifa-like plait looked startled to see him, dripping wet on Zack's bed. Cloud hurriedly pulled the blanket over his lap. Her face went bright pink. "I—I'm sorry. I just need some blood from you," she said, holding up the tray of tubes.

Cloud nodded his assent and she came carefully closer. Looking at her face was better than the back of her head. Her face looked nothing like his Tifa. As she prepared the needle and his arm, her eyes kept being drawn to the vivid red scar on his chest. He really wasn't vain – not at all like Zack – but he couldn't stand that scar. It was a constant reminder of the most terrifying night of his life. It was the night he had failed Tifa.

The lab tech finished filling all of her little tubes and gave Cloud a tiny smile. "Thanks," she said quietly before letting herself out of the room. Cloud watched her go, and then he picked up Zack's pillow to dry his hair.

From there, it escalated to accusations. "Cloud, give me back my phone."

Cloud paused his movie and looked over at his roommate. "What? I don't have your phone."

"It was sitting right here when I got in the shower, and now it's gone. I know you took it, so just give it back and I'll drop it."

Cloud sat up, frowning indignantly. "I left to take a tread test. Maybe one of the orderlies took it."

"Right." Zack lowered his brows, something close to a scowl on his face. "Because the _orderlies_ want my phone."

Cloud threw up his hands. "Look, I don't know! Maybe you took it in the bathroom with you. Maybe it fell on the floor. Maybe you should try to figure something out for yourself for once, and stop expecting me to solve all your fucking problems for you!"

He knew he was crossing a line. One of the reasons the two of them fit so well together was because they complemented each other's weaknesses. Zack was the strong one and Cloud was the smart one. It was an unspoken understanding that they wouldn't rub the other's nose in it, and Cloud immediately regretted his words, but it was too late to take them back.

Zack glowered and Cloud unpaused the movie, pretending to be oblivious. Even as angry as he was, the guilt dogged him for the rest of the evening.

He never did learn where Zack found his phone, just that he had it back the next day and the remote no longer worked. When they were stuck in their beds for the infusions for 12 hours a day, with Zack refusing to speak to him, the television was his only way to pass the time.

Cloud tapped the remote against his palm a couple times and pressed several buttons, but there was no response from the TV. He flipped over the remote and opened the battery compartment. The batteries were missing. "Zack," Cloud sighed, trying to keep his tone civil. "Come _on_. Do you really think you could make me believe that I misplaced the _batteries_?"

"Don't look at me," Zack said acidly. "You're the one who solves all the problems."

Every time they were in the room together, when they weren't actively arguing, an angry silence hung over the atmosphere. Dr. Hyde seemed to be amused by their constant bickering. On Friday afternoon, after one of the lab techs had removed both of their IVs, he mentioned that they would be testing in the octo-room again.

They both sat up and glanced at each other. "Testing…together?" Cloud asked cautiously.

"Yes," Hyde confirmed. "Now that you've had a week of the infusions, we should be seeing some improvement in your performance."

"Right…but Zack's had another week of infusions, too," Cloud said hesitantly.

"Indeed," Hyde said. "But his improvements will be less pronounced because he's already at a significantly higher level."

Cloud looked nervously at his roommate. Although they'd spent the week frustrated and irritated with each other, he'd never actually been _afraid_ of Zack. His best friend would never hurt him. Right?

Zack scowled and flexed his fingers. "All right, let's do this."

The two of them stood and followed the orderlies down to the reflective metal room. Cloud stole glances at Zack, wondering if it would be more than a friendly spar this time. Cloud planned to give it his all, but surely Zack realized that it still wasn't a fair fight. He would hold back his full strength, if not his speed.

He had few advantages over Zack – experience being the main one – but Zack was stronger and faster, his senses sharper and reactions quicker. Even assuming Zack was holding back, Cloud would have to fight smarter to have any chance of winning.

The sleek metal doors slid open and granted them entrance. They walked to the center of the room. Zack waited for some kind of signal for the fight to begin; Cloud didn't. He barreled into Zack's midsection with his shoulder, catching the SOLDIER by surprise. Zack stumbled backwards and hit the floor hard, but he recovered quickly. He grabbed Cloud's arm and heaved, tossing him a good ten feet away. It was an artless move, doing very little to hurt Cloud, but it gave Zack time to get up.

"That was cheap," Zack said, cracking his neck.

Cloud sprang back to his feet and laughed bitterly as he warily circled his opponent. "This isn't a game, Zack. There are no rules to this kind of fight. You take whatever advantage you can use."

Zack laughed through his nose. "Good to know," he said, and then charged.

Cloud moved as fast as he could, but it wasn't nearly fast enough. The fist buried in his gut sent him flying through the air, and he landed on the metallic floor hard enough to jar his teeth. With the pain spreading outward from his stomach, he barely even noticed. He coughed, trying to catch his breath as Zack stalked him like a predator.

Cloud scrambled back to his feet, one arm wrapped protectively around his stomach, the other hand back up by his face. Zack was still telegraphing, and this time Cloud had just enough warning to block his punch with his forearm, but that was only marginally better. He could swear he heard the bone snap before he was knocked on his ass and slid across the floor.

He didn't jump up right away this time. His breathing was harsh and uneven, jagged with the pain shooting through him. Cloud cradled his broken arm close to his body, in front of his stomach. If Zack had tried to take advantage of his injuries, Cloud would have been done for, but Zack wasn't a dirty fighter. The SOLDIER casually walked closer, a smug look on his face.

Cloud pushed himself into a sitting position. He coughed again, harder this time, and spit out the gunk that came up, wincing at the bright red blood that spattered the floor. Zack leaned over him, leering. "Come on, buddy, I know you've got more than that in you."

Cloud stared back, unflinching. There was a green ring glowing around the outside of Zack's dark blue iris. He'd never seen anything like that during their training sessions; it was lit with unfettered fury. Cloud felt it, too. Rage tingled up the back of his head, demanding action. He whipped his leg around, knocking Zack's feet out from under him.

Zack landed hard on his back, giving Cloud an extra few seconds to get to his feet and kick Zack in the gut. Again, Zack was unprepared for Cloud's flagrant disregard for the rules of a fair fight, even less so for the extra strength he had been granted from his first set of infusions. Snarling, Zack grabbed the cadet's ankle and jerked, hurling him against the wall as if he were no more significant than a rag doll. Cloud slammed into the hard metal side of the arena, taking most of the impact with his head and shoulder. The world spun as he crashed in a sloppy pile on the floor.

Zack stood and approached stealthily, but Cloud barely even noticed. He raised his head slightly from the floor and blinked at all four Zacks, trying to make the room stop moving. "Come on. Get up!" the Zacks said, nudging him with their feet.

"Zack. Wait," Cloud pleaded, trying to sit up. It was hard to do when up was down, and left and right switched places every second. The motion nearly made him vomit.

"Wait?" Zack asked mockingly. "I thought there were no rules in this kind of fight. You take whatever advantage you can get, right?"

Cloud just shook his head, or at least he thought that's what his head was doing. Hell, he never had a chance in this fight. Zack leaned over and grabbed him by the front of his scrub shirt and picked him up, pressing his back against the wall. He had his opponent more or less in a standing position, which was apparently enough to satisfy Zack's sense of honor, although Cloud was swaying on his feet and making no move to protect himself. That seemed to make Zack even angrier, as if the cadet were intentionally leaving himself open to taunt him. He balled up his fist and punched Cloud in the face, feeling cartilage collapsing underneath his hand.

Cloud crumpled like a sack of flour. Zack lost himself completely to the rage, following him down and punching him, again and again. He ignored the blood splattering and the crunching he felt beneath his fist. He ignored the fact that Cloud wasn't moving. He ignored Hojo's voice over the speaker, laced with good humor, telling him it was enough. But he couldn't ignore the dart that lodged in his side. As his punches grew weaker and weaker, the fog of rage cleared. He looked down in horror at the mess he had made of his best friend. He only had a moment for the regret to grip him before he slumped down on top of Cloud.

* * *

When he awoke in his bed with a splitting headache, there was plenty of time for regret. Memories of the fight assaulted him. At the time, Zack had been blinded by rage. The images coming in through his eyes didn't really register in his mind. But now he replayed the whole scene over again, in gloriously crisp detail. What was _wrong_ with him? How could he have done that?

 _Blip-blip._

Jax pushed through the door with his rolling food tray. "Hey Zack!"

"Hey Jax," Zack said dully. He stared blankly at the ceiling above his bed.

Jax looked at him with concern. "Are you feeling alright today?"

Zack ignored the question. It really didn't matter how he felt. "Please tell me he's ok," he said instead, rolling his head toward the orderly.

Jax came closer, pushing the tray ahead of him. "The blond kid?" he asked tentatively.

"Yeah," Zack sighed, sitting up. "I didn't…I mean, he's still…?" He couldn't even finish the question. He couldn't put it into words.

The orderly considered him, trying to decide how to phrase it. "Right now he's…well, you know what? He'll be ok," he said. "H&H wouldn't let you kill him."

Jax had probably meant it to be reassuring, but his words hit Zack like a train. How was it possible that Hojo and Hyde needed to save Cloud from _him_?

"Fuck," he whispered, his face crumpling. "I didn't mean to…I just…FUCK!" The last word came out in a yell as he slammed his fist into the mattress. "What is _wrong_ with me?" He dropped his head forward and dug his hands into his hair.

Jax sat down on the bed next to him and put his head in front of Zack's, trying to catch his eye. "If it makes you feel any better, I don't think it was all you," he said softly, pushing back that one long strand that always fell in Zack's face.

"What do you mean?" Zack asked warily, lifting his head.

Jax glanced in the direction of the camera and then stood abruptly. "Well, here's your dinner," he said, switching to a cheerful tone. "I'll come back to get your dishes a little later." He left the tray where it was in the middle of the room and swept back out through the door, giving Zack only a moment to register the strange blue glove he wore on one hand.

Bringing his hands up to rub his temples, Zack stared at the camera in the corner. Was someone watching him right now, or were they just recording it? He wouldn't be surprised if they had him under constant supervision after he'd lost his mind in the octo-room yesterday. Cloud had forgiven him once for losing control, but that was different. There was forgiveness, and then there was trust. What if Cloud never trusted him again? Zack wasn't sure _he_ would, if their positions had been reversed.

His vision blurred as he stared at the unidentified food substance on his tray. The very idea of food made him nauseous. In his mind, he relived the fight, over and over on a loop: the way Cloud's face seemed to collapse under his fists; the heat of his blood everywhere – on Zack's hands, splattering on his own face, flowing down to puddle at his knees; the way Cloud's jaw hung loosely in an angle that was just _wrong_.

Zack curled into himself and rolled onto his side. He didn't think he'd ever hated himself as much as he did in that moment.

* * *

Dr. Hyde came in the next morning, wearing the same strange blue glove as Jax had the day before. The glove felt a little strange when he touched Zack's skin, but didn't seem to have any other effect.

The doctor recorded his vital signs while Zack sat there listlessly. He began packing the tools back in his little black bag. "Where's Cloud?" he asked suddenly. Zack didn't really think Hyde would be more honest or forthcoming than Jax, but he also wouldn't try to sugarcoat it, and he needed to know how bad it really was.

Hyde looked up, a hint of a smile quirking one side of his face. "Don't you know?" Zack just scowled. "Well, let's just say I don't think he'll be joining us for a while."

"What does that mean?" Zack demanded. "Will he be ok?"

"On second thought," Hyde mused, ignoring his question, "perhaps it will be sooner than expected. Dr. Hojo wasn't impressed." He looked at Zack over his tiny spectacles. "Just enjoy your day off. Another week of testing starts tomorrow."

Zack grunted in frustration as Hyde let himself out the door. "Prick," he muttered. He flopped back on the bed and rolled his head to the side, looking at Cloud's bed. They had been roommates once before. The night of the disastrous graduation ceremony, the night of the Honeybee Inn, he had led an extremely drunk Cloud back to his apartment.

 _"Tap…tap…hey Zack, I think your walls are hollow!" Cloud announced loudly as they walked down the apartment hallway in the middle of the night._

 _"Shh! Cloud, be quiet! It's late!"_

 _"Oh!" The look on Cloud's face was comical, and although he probably thought he had lowered his voice to an appropriate level, it wasn't much quieter. "That's right, SOLDIERs are sleeeeeeping. Hey, don't they have super good hearing anyway? I bet they—whoa!"_

 _SOLDIERs did have exceptional hearing, including Zack, which is why he had abruptly shoved Cloud into a broom closet. "Hey Sephiroth! What are you doing up so late?" he said, leaning against the closet door._

 _Sephiroth did not look amused. "Zack, are you drunk again?"_

 _"Uh, yep, yes I am," he said with a grin. "Sir," he tacked on belatedly._

 _A clattering crash sounded behind the door. Zack winced. "And you brought home a drunk girl, too, I see," Sephiroth said dryly._

 _"No, no, not at all!" Zack protested. "I don't do that anymore." It was true. He felt like a different person since the first time he saw Aerith's sweet smile. He would probably always be a charmer, but he really wasn't interested in accumulating notches on his bed post anymore._

 _Another crash sounded, along with maniacal giggling. Sephiroth crossed his arms over his chest, which was pretty damn intimidating, even in nothing but pajama pants. "You're going to tell me she's not drunk?"_

 _"Um…that's not exactly what I meant."_

 _The door pushed open an inch before Zack slammed it closed again. "Zack!" Cloud hissed loudly. "I'm stuck in here!"_

 _Sephiroth's eyebrows shot to his hairline. "Not a she. I see."_

 _"No, that's not—"_

 _Sephiroth sighed and threw up his arms. "None of my business. Just keep him quiet, Zack."_

 _"But I—"_

 _Sephiroth was already almost back to his apartment when Zack realized that he was no longer holding the door shut. Cloud fell out of the closet into the hall. "Dude! Was that Sephiroth?" He started crawling down the hall on his hands and knees, catching a glimpse of impossibly long gray hair before the door slammed shut. "Oh my gods! Zack! You have to introduce me! He's my—"_

 _Zack grabbed Cloud by the back of his shirt and cast sleep. If he wasn't in trouble already, having a drunken Cloud banging down Sephiroth's door in the middle of the night would definitely do it. Cloud's arms and legs went slack and he slumped down to the ground. Zack sighed and threw him over his shoulder. The drool down his back was worth it for the silence._

 _He juggled Cloud's weight to the side while he dug in his pocket. The kid really had put on quite a few pounds of muscle since they'd been training together. Pulling out his key, Zack jabbed several times at the tiny keyhole before managing to hit his target. He leaned against the door and turned the knob, taken completely by surprise when he fell through the doorway and Cloud tumbled onto the carpeted floor. "Ooh. Sorry 'bout that, man," he said, wincing. "Eh, you're fine. It's a soft landing. You cool with the couch?" There was no response from his sleeping friend – not that Zack had expected one. "Alrighty then," he said, patting Cloud's leg sloppily._

 _Zack used the coffee table to get himself back on his feet, then flicked on the light and closed the front door. He tossed his keys in the general direction of the ceramic bowl by the door. "Ok, come here little buddy," he said, bending down and sliding his arms under Cloud's back and knees. He carried him the few steps to the couch and laid him down gently. Then he stood and looked down at his friend with his hands propped on his hips. "Let's see...I bet you want a pillow, huh? And a blanket. Yeah, I think I've got some of those." Zack clumsily stumbled off to retrieve the bedding._

 _Once Cloud was situated with the pillow under his head, blankets tucked around him like a child, Zack smoothed the hair away from his face. "Sleep tight, kiddo," he said with a fond smile._

 _The next morning came far too soon for Zack. He smacked at the alarm and forced himself to sit up. His head pounded, but it was manageable. The mako in his blood burned through the access alcohol fairly quickly, which was why he never gave much thought to getting drunk on work nights. He slogged out of bed and into the bathroom. Before doing anything else, he dug in the medicine cabinet for something to quiet the jackhammer in his head. He popped a couple capsules in his mouth and stuck his head under the faucet to wash them down. The mirror swung back into view as he closed the cabinet. "Mm. Shit," Zack muttered. That's what he looked like._

 _A shower and a cup of coffee later, he felt mostly human. He stood next to the couch and looked down at Cloud. His face was scrunched up like he was dreaming. He looked beyond innocent with his blond spikes mashed around his head, and Zack couldn't help but smile. He was definitely going to feel worse than the SOLDIER when he woke up._

 _Zack fetched the pills from the bathroom and set a bottle of water next to them on the coffee table. He leaned down and shook Cloud's shoulder. "Cloud. I've gotta go to work, buddy."_

 _Cloud scowled without opening his eyes. "m not hungry, Mom." He snuggled his face deeper into the pillow and was out again._

 _Zack laughed. Cloud probably wouldn't remember anything he told him now, anyway. He scribbled down a note and left it on the coffee table with the pills and water._

 _'Cloud, I had to go to work. Be back around 4. Eat whatever you want but DO NOT leave the apartment. I'll take you to the barracks to get your stuff when I get home. Stay out of the liquor.'_

 _The last part was meant as a joke. He knew the thought of alcohol would make him want to throw up, if he wasn't already bent over the toilet. Zack laughed to himself and ruffled Cloud's hair before he left._

 _Blip-blip._

Zack's reminiscence was interrupted by the entrance of two green-scrub orderlies. It was the same two who had brought them down to the octo-room, and any good feelings brought back by the memories were immediately doused.

"Time for your session with Professor Hojo," the hairy one said dully.

"What session?" Zack asked suspiciously.

The orderly actually looked at him this time. "I dunno. We're just supposed to bring you. We gotta put these on first," he said, holding up two pairs of metal cuffs in his hands. They were double reinforced metal, suitable for SOLDIER strength. It seemed a little silly to Zack; he had no intention of attacking anyone, but he couldn't blame them for being careful after his performance the night before.

He sat at the edge of the bed with his feet over the side while one of them secured metal cuffs around his ankles. The other stood next to him with his strange blue glove on Zack's arm. Once that was done, they secured a second set around his wrists.

Zack was as docile as a lamb as they led him to Hojo's office. The chains jingled merrily with every step, mocking him with their cheerful tune. When the fancy door of the office slid into the wall, Zack walked forward without prompting. He sat in the chair and stared dully at Hojo.

Hojo looked ecstatic. He had his hands clasped in front of him as he smiled at Zack. "I never got the chance to congratulate you after your match. Brilliant performance. Well done, Zackary!"

Zack couldn't even summon righteous indignation. After all, he was the one who had made mincemeat of his best friend's face. He looked coldly at Hojo. "I don't know how you made me freak out like that, but if you ever pull something like that again, I'll make sure it's _your_ face next time." He wasn't even completely sure Hojo had done something – it was entirely possible that he just snapped under the stress – but Zack needed to believe it for his own sanity.

Hojo lost his smile. "If you're ever to become the perfect soldier, you need to let go of those silly feelings. Human emotions make you weak. Once you learn to stop pretending like you care, those won't be necessary," he said, gesturing to the cuffs.

Zack glanced down at the metal encircling his wrists. "If I ever get to that point, please put me out of my misery," he said acidly.

Professor Hojo stood and straightened his lab jacket with a huff. "Well! I see how you respond to congratulations. Maybe negative reinforcement is more motivational for you."

"Probably," Zack muttered. At the moment, he would have preferred some kind of punishment. He didn't think anything could make him feel any worse than he already did.

A sly grin slid across Hojo's face. It was disturbing for some reason that Zack couldn't put into words. "Very well," he said. "Perhaps we'll talk when you're feeling more amicable." He pressed a button on his desk. A smooth sliding sound tipped him off to the opening of the office door.

"Don't hold your breath," Zack said. He stood and turned around to find the orderlies standing exactly where he'd left them. He wondered if they would still be standing in the same place if their meeting had taken an hour. Shooting one last scowl at the professor, he jingled his way back out of the office.

* * *

It looked different now. The gray place was no longer an expanse of nothingness. It was his childhood home. His mother stood at the stove, humming an unfamiliar tune. Cloud was stretched out on the bed with his hands behind his head, watching her work. He felt content in the warmth of the small hut. "Mom?" he said dreamily.

"Yes, love?"

Cloud sat up, frowning. She didn't sound right, and her accent was funny. Whatever she was cooking smelled unfamiliar, and her movements were not quite right. "You're not my mom," he said suspiciously. Instantly, he wished he could take the words back as the hut dissolved into smoke. "Wait! Come back!" Her presence was comforting, even if all the details weren't right.

Something not quite solid swirled around him in the gray mist. "Mother? Is that you?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm here," she said in her soothing voice. It was his guardian angel, not the mother who had tended to his childhood scrapes and fed him chicken soup when he got sick.

"Who was that just now?" Cloud asked the thickened mist.

"I don't know what you mean. I'm the only one here," she said serenely.

"But I…" Cloud shook his head. His brain felt scrambled. Maybe the whole thing was a product of his stressed mind; he felt like he needed his mother more than he had in years, and he ached for the comfort she provided. "Never mind. I'm glad you're here." He strained to focus on the faint form, but the harder he tried, the less certain he was that he had seen anything at all. He laid back and closed his eyes. "I think something's wrong with Zack. And maybe me, too. I know I was angry about something, but…" he reached for the memory, but it was slipping away from him through the mist. "I think he hurt me. And I think he meant to."

Putting his fears into words was disquieting. Before this strange hospital, he would have said that Zack would never hurt him. The gray almost-shape wisped in front of him again.

"There's nothing wrong with you, love," she said. But the Other…" she trailed off.

Cloud sat up. "You've been in his head, too."

"Yes," she said softly, regretfully.

"What is it, Mother? Tell me what you saw."

"He is…jealous." She sounded hesitant to tell him.

Cloud could have laughed out loud. "Why would Zack be jealous of _me_?"

Something touched his face softly. "You don't see it, but you are special. The Other sees it, too. It's why he chose you."

"Chose me?" Cloud asked skeptically. "For what?"

The mist started dissipating around him. "Wait! Don't go yet! " Cloud tried to stop her, lunging at her and wrapping his arms around nothing. The gray had shifted into watery green, and he was still frozen in his standing position. He heard the sound of the drain sucking the liquid out of the tube, and a moment later he hit his knees on the soft mat. Wendy stood next to Kyle.

Cloud grimaced. Any movement was hurting his face. The _air_ was hurting his face. Wendy hauled him up by his arm and he bit his tongue to stifle the scream. "Come on, kid. Back to your room," she said.

They began walking back through the cement hallway. He reached up gingerly and touched his cheek. It was definitely still tender. His ribs and abdomen throbbed with pain. "Why are you taking me out before I'm healed?" he asked as she led him down the hall. The swelling around his mouth made it hard to form words.

"Boss doesn't think you've earned it," she said. She had one of those strange blue gloves too, and she kept it on his arm while they walked. "Broken bones and internal bleeding will throw off the testing schedule. Anything else…" she shrugged.

She removed her hand from his arm when they neared the door, just before the _blip-blip_ sounded. _Is that glove what they're using to unlock the doors? I wonder how hard it would be to get ahold of one of those._

He walked in the room ahead of Wendy. Zack jumped up from the bed as soon as he crossed the threshold, and Cloud took a startled step back, crunching her toes.

"Cloud!" Zack took a couple steps toward him, but stopped abruptly when he saw the look on his friend's face. "Cloud, I…I didn't…" He didn't seem to know what to say. His eyes focused instead on Wendy, who was leaning against the door with her arms across her chest, an expectant grin on her face. "Why are you standing there like that?" he demanded, directing his swirling emotions at her like a dart.

Wendy didn't seem to notice. "I missed all the fun last week. I thought I might get to see the encore performance," she said innocently.

Zack scowled at her. "Get out, Wendy."

Wendy looked like a giant baby pouting. Then she looked over at Cloud. "I should help you get changed anyway."

Cloud backed away fast. "Uh, no, that's ok Wendy. I got it." Between the two of them, Zack seemed pretty mellow, but Wendy was an immediate threat. He was wearing wet scrubs this time and he didn't even want to imagine what would happen if she tried to pull his shirt over his head with her trademark gentleness.

"Aww you guys are no fun," Wendy said sullenly before letting herself out of the room.

Cloud sat down gingerly on the edge of his bed, keeping a wary eye on Zack. He was still sore and aching all over, but he had to wonder how much worse it would have been if they hadn't let him heal some of his wounds in the tank. He supposed he should be thankful for the broken bones, because they were the only reason he'd been allowed to heal at all.

For once, Zack seemed at a loss for words. He took a few steps closer, but slowly, like he was afraid to spook him. "Cloud. I—I'm so sorry. I don't even know what to say. I don't know what happened." Cloud just stared at him. He wanted to believe him. He seemed like the Zack he thought he knew. The fight in his memory seemed so surreal. If he weren't so sore and battered, he might have been convinced it was all a bad dream. "I just…please…will you say something?" Zack pleaded. "Talk to me. Yell at me. Beat the shit out of me if it makes you feel better. Whatever you need to do. Ok? Cloud?"

Cloud blinked slowly. "I…" Zack leaned forward in anticipation of his words. "I need a shower," he said softly.

Zack's face fell, but he nodded and sat on his own bed. "Yeah, ok. We got some more shampoo and towels." He smiled slightly, hoping they could laugh about their silly fights from the previous week, but his roommate just blinked slowly before turning to walk into the bathroom.

Cloud shut the door and turned the shower on full blast. He wasn't even sure if he wanted to get in, but he couldn't sit out there with Zack anymore. He couldn't look at the sorrow in his eyes and not try to comfort him, and Cloud wasn't ready to do that yet. It wasn't that he didn't want to forgive his friend; he just felt so unsure about what was real and with whom he was sharing a room. Gingerly, he pulled his shirt over his head. He hissed a couple times when he lifted his arms and again when the shirt brushed against his face, which seemed much thicker than usual.

By the time he had managed to remove all of his clothes, the mirror was coated in steam. He wiped it away with his hand, leaving a reflection that wasn't entirely clear, and he was thankful for small favors. Cloud didn't even recognize himself. He'd been in plenty of fights in his youth and had been on the losing end of enough of them, but he couldn't remember ever being unable to see the color of his own skin. It was a palette of reds, purples, and blues. There was still a lot of swelling, causing lumps in strange places and pulling the delicate features of his face out of place. He reached his hand up to touch his cheek, wincing at the contact. It was the only way he could convince himself that the monster in the mirror was actually him.

"God damn, Zack," he whispered to himself. Cloud really only remembered being hit twice after banging his head on the wall. That meant that Zack must have kept going after he lost consciousness. More than anything, that convinced him that something was wrong. The Zack he knew would never have done something like that. He was obsessed with his ideas of fairness and honor. It was ironic because he'd been given a surgical advantage over most of the people on the planet, but he always, _always_ held back unless it was a real life-or-death battle. The question that remained was whether the Zack out there now was the one he knew, or the stranger with the green-ringed iris from the octo-room.

The shower was more painful than he anticipated, but he pushed through it anyway. He might as well get used to it, because it sounded like Hojo had no plans of letting him recover before the testing continued.

He shut off the water and wrapped himself in the fluffy towel. _Gods, I could really use some painkillers right about now._ The mirror opened into a medicine cabinet, but it was bare. A strong sense of déjà vu gripped him. It was exactly the same as Zack's medicine cabinet. Cloud had gotten some liberal use of those pills the morning he awoke on Zack's couch with the worst headache of his life.

 _'Cloud, I had to go to work. Be back around 4. Eat whatever you want but DO NOT leave the apartment. I'll take you to the barracks to get your stuff when I get home. Stay out of the liquor.'_

 _Cloud's stomach lurched in warning as he struggled to make sense of the words in Zack's hastily scribbled note. He stumbled to the bathroom just in time to avoid making a mess of the hardwood floor. He laid his head on the toilet seat and breathed harshly, sweat trickling down his face, swearing then and there that he would never again touch whatever Zack had given him the night before. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been so miserable._

 _He must have stayed in that bathroom for hours. When he finally felt that it was safe to go back out to the couch, he noticed the bottle of pills and the water sitting next to the note. He thumbed off the cap and poured several into his hand. Even the little bit of water he used to wash them down threatened to set off his stomach again._

 _Cloud eased his way back down on the couch and stared at nothing. Now that he was past the immediate distraction of the hangover, his future loomed drearily in front of him. He didn't know what he was going to do. He should be getting a bus ticket for his trip home. He should be packing up his few belongings in the barracks. But thinking of walking back into his hometown, admitting that he was a failure, made his stomach ache worse than the poison his body had just rejected._

 _Around noon, his phone vibrated in his pocket, startling him from the daze in which he'd been floating. He reached his hand down and retrieved it, reading the display before answering. It was Zack, of course. Who else would call him?_

 _"Hey buddy! You still alive?"_

 _"Uh. I'm not really sure," Cloud mumbled._

 _Zack laughed, sounding much too functional for Cloud's liking. "Yeah. Sorry about that. You drinking a lot of water today?"_

 _"Mm mm," he groaned._

 _"Well, you need to. And try to eat something if you can."_

 _"Zaaaack. Stop," Cloud moaned. "You're gonna make me puke again."_

 _"Ok, ok," Zack laughed. He seemed far too amused by this. "I'll get take-out on my way home from work. Maybe you'll feel like eating by then."_

 _Cloud rolled on his back and laid an arm over his eyes. "I doubt it. But I should get going, anyway. Maybe I can catch a bus back home tonight."_

 _Zack paused. "There's no need to rush, man. You can crash as long as you want."_

 _Despite feeling like death warmed over, Cloud smiled slightly. It was such a typical Zack thing to say. He was always speaking before thinking things through. "Thanks, but I—"_

 _"Hey, we'll talk about it tonight, ok? I've gotta go. Just watch TV or play some video games or something. Later."_

 _Cloud sighed and dropped his phone on the coffee table without moving the arm across his eyes. He actually felt a little better after hearing Zack's voice, maybe even well enough to go back to sleep. Within minutes, he had drifted back into blissful nothingness._

 _He awoke to the click of the door and the smell of food that actually didn't make his stomach churn. Zack's keys jingled as he pulled them from the lock. He tossed them into the bowl by the door and looked at Cloud through the late afternoon gloom. "You still sleeping? You're gonna be up all night," he warned, closing the door behind him. He tossed a duffel bag at Cloud's feet. "I got your stuff from the barracks."_

 _Cloud sat up groggily. "Aw, thanks. You didn't have to do that."_

 _"Yeah, I know, but you sounded pretty shitty still at noon. Plus it gave me the chance to go through all your stuff," he grinned._

 _Cloud pushed his hair out of his face with his hands and yawned. "Find anything interesting?"_

 _"Just your porn stash. As a superior officer, I felt duty-bound to confiscate it."_

 _Cloud laughed out loud, surprised at how much better he was feeling. He didn't have anything like that in the barracks, but he wouldn't put it past Zack to stick some in his bag just to taunt him about it later._

 _"Yeah, well, go ahead and add it to your collection, but I doubt you'll even notice. You must have confiscated it from tons of cadets to get such a huge stash."_

 _Zack grinned and set down the bag of food on the table. "Feel like eating yet?"_

 _Cloud thought about it. "I probably can manage some food." He rubbed his face with his hands. "Then I need to use your computer."_

 _Zack removed several little cardboard boxes from the bag and spread them out on the coffee table. He tossed a plastic fork to Cloud and began opening the boxes, checking out the contents before settling on some spicy noodles. "Sure. What for?"_

 _Cloud fiddled with his fork. "I need to look at the bus schedule."_

 _Zack stabbed his fork into the noodles and twisted it around, wrapping the utensil in strings of pasta. "Hey, you really don't have to be in such a rush, buddy. You can stay here as long as you need to."_

 _Cloud smiled, but it was tinged with sadness. "As much as I would love to be the unemployed homeless guy crashing on your couch, there's really no reason for me to be here anymore."_

 _A serious look rarely seen on Zack's face settled as he looked up at his friend. "Cloud…if you leave…I don't know if I'll ever see you again."_

 _That thought was one Cloud did not need added to the pile of painful emotions that stirred every time he thought about his future. "That's not true. We can visit each other. You can come see my little backwater town. I'm sure you'll be traveling all the time anyway, right?"_

 _Zack just stared at him for a minute, but then he got that calculating look on his face. It usually meant he was up to something that would sound like a great idea at the time, but inevitably ended up being more than he bargained for. "How about this? You stay here for the weekend, and we'll get you a bus ticket for Monday."_

 _It sounded like he was only getting a piece of Zack's grand scheme, as usual, but Cloud really wasn't in that much of a hurry to slink back home. They could have one last weekend together._

In the little bathroom of the hospital room, Cloud closed the medicine cabinet. That weekend was incredible. Even without the rest of Zack's scheme – which would only be revealed later – it would have been hard for Cloud to leave him behind to return to his sleepy hometown. He never felt more like himself, more alive, than when he was with Zack. If he'd gone home, his mother would have been the only person happy to see him. He would be the outcast again, and the smile that had come to feel natural on his face would be just a memory.

Even so, it would have been better than losing his friend the way he had here at the hospital facility. At least if he had gone home, he could have remembered Zack the way he was back at the academy. All of those happy memories were now tainted with anger and insults and the image of Zack's rage.

Cloud opened the bathroom door and began walking carefully across the room. Someone had put a clean set of scrubs on his bed, and food had been delivered while he'd been in the shower. Zack sat on his own bed with his empty plate. His eyes followed Cloud as he made his way across the room. Cloud averted his eyes and focused on walking without moving the muscles of his abdomen. It was still a deep purple from Zack's fist. The bruise stretched around the side under his ribs.

Zack's eyes landed on that dark purple patch and his face paled. He swallowed hard and looked up at Cloud's face, which really wasn't better. "They…uh…they brought our food," he said tentatively. "Are you hungry?"

Truthfully, Cloud wanted to lie on the bed and try not to move. Eating sounded like something that would require effort. "Not at all," he said quietly. "You can have it if you want."

Zack didn't make a move for the food as Cloud eased himself down on the bed. He pushed the clean scrubs to the side and carefully stretched out on his back. "I uh…I got some ice for you," Zack said, holding up a bag. He stood and approached Cloud's bed slowly. His eyes were their usual dark blue, without a trace of the spooky green ring Cloud had seen in the octo-room.

Zack sat down on the edge of the bed. Instead of just handing the ice to Cloud, he pressed it up against the most tender side of his face and held it there. The cold was a bit of a shock, but soon the welcoming numbness sunk in. Cloud let out a sigh of relief and released the tension in his muscles. His eyes drifted closed. A few seconds later, he felt a soothing hand carding through his hair. It continued in a regular pattern, starting at his forehead and tracing over the top of his head. It was fantastically relaxing, and he soon found himself drifting off to sleep.

The whispered words he heard may have been a dream, or they may have been from the man gently running his fingers through his hair. "I swear to you - I will never let you be hurt again."

* * *

Zack wanted to stay there all night. He couldn't blame Cloud for being skittish, and he wasn't sure if his acceptance of Zack's peace offering was sincere or if he was just too exhausted to fight back. What if he didn't want anything to do with him the next morning? What if this was his last chance to be with him? But in the end, his concern for Cloud's rest overcame his own selfish desires. Every time Cloud moved in his sleep, he bumped against Zack in the small bed. He didn't wake up, but his face scrunched up in pain.

Cloud had fallen asleep without getting dressed, and Zack was afraid to wake him up and hurt him more by pulling out the covers underneath him, but it got cold in there at night. He traced his fingers one last time through the golden spikes before easing himself off the bed. He pulled the blanket from his own bed and tucked it around Cloud's shoulders. At least it hid the hideous bruise that accompanied the angry scar marring his chest.

He ached just looking at Cloud's battered face. Watching his friend trying to move around the next morning hurt Zack almost as much as it hurt Cloud himself. Every wince or grunt of pain shot through Zack like a shock. "Do you need help?" he asked tentatively. "Getting dressed?"

Cloud's pained eyes looked up at him. "No. I'm fine," he said softly, and then went back to work easing on the yellow scrubs. He was so subdued, and Zack had no idea where he stood.

 _Blip-blip._

Dr. Hyde entered the room, looking chipper. He linked his hands behind his back and bounced a bit on his toes. "Good morning, boys. Ready for round two of testing?" Zack just glared at Hyde, and Cloud ignored him, continuing his slow work getting dressed. Apparently not expecting an answer, Dr. Hyde beamed at them. "Good. Cloud, you're first."

"What?!" Zack started forward, his fists clenching at his sides. "Are you crazy? He can't do testing today!"

"He can and he will," Dr. Hyde said calmly.

"Doc, look at him! He's still injured!" Zack interjected furiously.

Dr. Hyde shrugged. "Then he shouldn't have let himself get beat so badly."

Zack stormed toward the doctor. "You—"

"Zack," Cloud interrupted. The quiet steel in his voice cut through Zack's fury, and the SOLDIER stopped in his tracks, his eyes immediately drawn to Cloud. Cloud shook his head, saying nothing else. Then he turned to Dr. Hyde. "I'm ready."

Zack's fingernails cut into the palms of his hands. He felt helpless, furious, and guilty as hell. He clenched his teeth and watched Cloud follow Dr. Hyde through the door. "DAMN IT!" he exploded as soon as they were gone. He wanted to hit something. He wanted to scream. He wanted his sword so he could cut Dr. Hyde into pieces.

The thought was sobering. Zack fought who and what he was told to fight. His feelings had no place in his battles. He was just a tool, and if he didn't do it, someone else would, so he felt no guilt for his actions. On the contrary, it was thrilling, feeling the adrenaline pumping through his mako-thick blood, cutting down enemies. That's all they were – nameless enemies that someone else decided needed to die.

This felt different. He _wanted_ to hurt someone. It was too close to the rage he'd felt in the octo-room when he lost control. It all came full-circle, then. He wasn't angry at Dr. Hyde. He was angry at himself, angry that Cloud was letting him off so easy. He wanted to be hurt as badly as he had hurt Cloud. It wouldn't make it better, but he deserved it.

Zack let himself fall to the floor and sprawled on his back. He found himself looking up at the camera in the corner. He wondered, again, if someone was watching him through it. A guard, maybe? Even Hojo himself? "I bet you're enjoying this, aren't you? You sadistic asshole." It just wasn't satisfying to yell at electronics, though, so he sighed and directed his eyes back up at the ceiling.

What were they doing in that place, anyway? Why were they being forced to fight each other? He didn't even have any real idea what they were putting in those infusions. He supposed he'd been conditioned to accept whatever Shinra gave him, but maybe it was time to start thinking for himself. After this, he was starting to suspect that maybe Hojo and Hyde weren't doing this "treatment" to help them. It wasn't an enhancement; it felt more like an experiment.

The familiar sound of the door unlocking pulled Zack from his thoughts. It was Jax with breakfast. Zack rolled back and flipped himself up on his feet.

Jax grinned. "Showoff," he said, letting the door shut behind him. He only had a single covered platter on his tray.

Zack pulled the tray over to himself and removed the rounded cover. He was just starting to realize that he was famished, but he really didn't want to eat alone. He didn't want the time to think and brood. "Hey Jax?" he said, catching the orderly before he left. "Do you have a few minutes?"

Jax turned around and shrugged. "Sure. What's up?"

"I just realized…I don't know anything about you. You got family in the area?"

A shadow passed over the normally cheerful orderly's features and he sank down onto Cloud's bed. "I did, but…well, not anymore."

"Oh. Damn. I'm sorry," Zack said, feeling bad about stepping into that.

Jax lowered his head. "I don't really want to talk about it."

"Sure, of course," Zack said, searching for another, safer topic. "How do you like working for Shinra? Is Hojo always such a bastard?"

A chuckle escaped Jax, and just like that, he'd locked away those bad feelings. Zack wished he knew how to do that. "Well, it pays the bills," Jax said with a shrug. "It's not bad. It keeps me busy. I'm stuck here for the duration of the project, so I try to make the best of it. I've never actually met Hojo, though. I get orders from my boss, who's down the ladder from him. He's got kind of a reputation as a mad scientist though, so I wish I could."

Zack made a face and finished chewing his eggs before responding. "Trust me, you don't want to. Back at the academy, I used to hear rumors about him torturing little forest animals for kicks. I thought they were just stories, but now that I've met him? Yeah, I could totally see him doing it. Plus he has the most obnoxious voice that—"

"Zack," Jax interrupted with a tone of warning. "You shouldn't say things like that." His eyes flickered in the direction of the camera in the corner.

Zack snorted. "Hell, I don't care. I'll say it to his face." He turned to the camera. "You hear that, Hojo? You're a crazy bastard and everyone knows about your sick hobbies."

Jax quickly got to his feet. "Well, I should get going. Nice talking to you, Zack." Before Zack could respond, Jax escaped through the door.

 _Damn, he really seems scared of Hojo. I wonder why…_ As angry as Zack was about what Hojo had made him do – and he had decided that it was definitely Hojo's fault somehow – he didn't believe he was actually dangerous, especially to his employees. Maybe he should re-evaluate that idea. After all, he was practically orgasmically happy about how badly Cloud had been hurt. If the stories about the animals were true, what did it mean for the two of them? How many different ways could he come up with to hurt them in the name of science?


	5. Psychology

**"Well, I must hand it to you, Klaus. That was an amusing fight," Hojo chuckles. "Zack really does have some potential."**

 **Dr. Hyde beams. "All week, they were arguing like children!" he says proudly. "The chemical I added to the serum worked even better than I thought it would."**

 **"Indeed," Professor Hojo muses. "They did it all on their own after the infusions?"**

 **"Mm, not entirely," Hyde says. He rises and walks to the wet bar, pulling down two crystal glasses from the shelf and pouring the dark liquid from the decanter. Hojo doesn't bother to get him anything anymore, but Hyde makes himself at home. It surprises me because it requires a certain amount of trust, and Professor Hojo is not known to trust anyone. Even more shocking is that he almost seems to respect the doctor. The camaraderie they share is extremely unusual. In general, Hojo treats his employees as unfit to lick his boots, but he seems to have found a kindred spirit in Hyde.**

 **"I may have helped trigger a few fights," Hyde says. His modesty rings false with the haughty expression on his face. "But naturally, they blamed each other for everything that went wrong."**

 **It was juvenile, really, the way he played pranks on those boys. It was painful for me to watch them discover each new trigger and fight over every one. Perhaps I've become immune to the physical tortures they inflict on most of their subjects by now, but the psychological assault is new. They are well practiced at breaking the body, but the mind is entirely different.**

 **Dr. Hyde strolls back to his own overpriced chair and hands a drink to Hojo – more proof of his unusual trust in Hyde. Professor Hojo reclines with his spidery fingers wrapped around the sparkling crystal. He takes a sip of the dark liquid and sighs contentedly. "What now? I do hope you have more entertainment in store for me."**

 **Dr. Hyde frowns, his smug demeanor fading for a moment. "This is supposed to be about science," he says, as if he just remembered that it wasn't playtime. It was a mistake for Hojo to refer to it as _entertainment_. Hyde's conscience may be lacking, but it's not completely absent.**

 **"It is," Hojo says, a calculating smirk replacing his relaxed smile. "In fact, I've never studied this aspect of SOLDIERs and their trust in their comrades. Don't you think Shinra would be interested to learn how far one would be willing to go for another? Or what it takes to break that bond? It could be useful in captive situations and behavioral predictions in wartime."**

 **I can almost see the cogs turning in Dr. Hyde's head. His eyes get wider and brighter as he considers the possibilities. "Just think of the papers I could publish!" He looks back at Professor Hojo, his eyes narrowing speculatively behind his tiny glasses. "Of course, these two are already involved in the S-cell experiment. We shouldn't introduce a new one. Obviously, your brilliant work can't be compromised."**

 **"That's true," Hojo agrees. "The S-cell experiment must take priority. However, as long as you don't jeopardize the results, I don't have any objection to adding this new dimension to the experiment. We can accomplish both at the same time."**

 **It's fascinating, in a way, to watch these two in their manipulative chess game. Hojo plays on Hyde's interest in psychology as a way to continue his sick entertainment and soothe the doctor's ruffled conscience. Hyde applies careful flattery of Hojo's overblown ego to get his approval to launch a new project. As much as I'm beginning to despise them both, I won't deny that they're brilliant men. They must be aware of the other's motives and the delicate game they're playing, even as they pat themselves on the back for their own brilliant moves.**

 **Dr. Hojo fiddles absently with his tie as he thinks. "The specimens seem to have quite a strong bond. It will take time to tear down." An enlightened smile spreads across his face. "But don't be concerned, Horace. I have a plan."**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Psychology**

Zack was a SOLDIER. He was using to being pushed to his limits. He was used to working his body so hard that he fell asleep, fully dressed, the second he got back to his dorm.

He was used to long missions. Extreme cold and heat. Pain, hunger, and lack of sleep.

Cloud was not. That was the only explanation Zack could think of. This kind of conditioning must have seemed extreme to Cloud. Whether he was intentionally exaggerating or not wasn't really important right then.

"Five days, Cloud?"

"Yes, Zack! Five days! I'm starving! They force me to keep running and they give me all the water I want, but no food. Look, I can't even stand without shaking. I'm not making this up!" Cloud laid back on his bed, fighting back tears.

"Ok, buddy, ok," Zack soothed him. He watched his young friend deliberately slow his breathing and calm down. A few weeks had passed since the assault in the octo-room, and Zack was going to extra lengths to keep Cloud happy. His wounds had healed faster than expected since he'd started the mako treatment, but Zack could still see them every time he looked at his face. It was a filter of guilt.

When he seemed as calm as he was going to be, Zack said offhandedly, "You know, when you go through training for SOLDIER, they push you pretty hard. They want you to condition your body so that, when you're forced into those kinds of situations during a mission or whatever, you can survive it."

Cloud turned his head to look at Zack. "You're telling me that they conditioned you by starving you while forcing you to run until your legs gave out?"

"Well…no, not exactly. But they did stuff _like_ that, and it was for a good reason."

Cloud's face started turning red again. "Can you think of a good reason for _this_?"

Zack got up from his bed and went to sit on Cloud's. He rested a hand on his friend's golden hair, staving off the mounting hysteria. "Look, I'll talk to Dr. Hyde, ok? We can eat together, and that way they'll have to give you the same thing I'm getting or else explain to me why you can't."

Cloud looked away, but he nodded reluctantly. Zack was afraid that his friend was beginning to lose faith in him.

* * *

"Dude, you totally cheated!" Zack accused.

Cloud laughed. "It's not cheating. It's called reading cues."

"What are you talking about?"

The two boys sat on the floor between their beds with a deck of cards. Zack was fortunate that they weren't actually gambling.

"You know why they call it a _poker face_ , Zack? Because you need to keep a straight face to be any good at poker. And you really suck, buddy."

Zack sputtered indignantly. "I _am_ keeping a straight face. You can see my cards or something!"

Cloud laughed even harder. "I might as well be. They're written all over your face."

 _Blip-blip._

"Whatever. I refuse to concede defeat," Zack said, tossing his cards back by the deck.

Cloud wasn't even listening anymore. He had jumped up from the floor and was already sitting at the table, smelling food for the first time in days. His stomach knotted painfully in anticipation.

"Hey guys," Jax said as he pulled in the trays. "Looks like you get to eat together today."

Cloud took his eyes off the food long enough to glance at Zack, who threw him a wink.

"But Zack, you're scheduled for some testing in 20 minutes, so you'll have to stop talking long enough to shovel it down if you want to eat."

Cloud had eagerly grabbed his tray and was cramming food into his mouth by the handful. Silverware had no place on the express train.

"Damn, buddy," Zack said, watching his friend in awe. "Slow down before you choke or puke or something." He picked up his fork and stabbed it into a piece of broccoli.

Cloud knew that Zack thought he was either delusional or exaggerating, but it really had been days since he'd last eaten. Zack's voice only registered as a dim background distraction in comparison to the clamoring of his starving cells. In less than 3 minutes, the cadet's plate was empty. He sat back in his chair, trying to catch his breath, wiping his hands on a napkin.

Zack stared at him, wide-eyed, as he slowly chewed his food.

"Can I have whatever you don't finish?" Cloud asked, fidgeting with the napkin while he watched Zack's leisurely dinner.

"Um, why don't you just let that settle a little bit first?" Zack asked.

"It's settling, Zack! And you have to leave in 15 minutes anyway."

Zack finally shrugged. "Yeah. You can finish the rest when I leave."

Cloud nodded, but he was staring so intensely that Zack was too unnerved to continue eating in front of him. Zack set down his fork and shoved his half-eaten plate across the table. Cloud didn't hesitate to pick up his fork and continue stuffing his face, but at least he was civilized enough to use silverware this time.

 _Blip-blip._

Jax poked his head through the door. "Yo, Zack. You ready?"

Zack took one last look at Cloud cleaning his plate and shook his head. "Yeah, let's go."

Cloud polished off every last crumb, then slumped down in his chair. Finally, the constant ache in his stomach had been dulled. He had five minutes of contentment before a new feeling kicked up from his gut.

 _Oh…shit._

He clamped his hand over his mouth and bolted to the bathroom, barely making it over the threshold before losing his much-anticipated lunch all over the bathroom floor. He fell to his knees and crawled the rest of the way to the bowl, just in time for the next violent expulsion. There was barely time to gasp for breath before his stomach twisted in a painful cramp, forcefully emptying every last morsel of food. After ten excruciating minutes, his fashionable yellow scrubs were soaked with sweat.

Cloud rested his face on the seat and tried to catch his breath. His body had been so intent on ridding his stomach of its contents that he'd gotten dizzy from the lack of air. When his head had finally cleared, he pushed himself up on shaking arms and shuffled over to the sink. Gaia, he looked awful. His face was pasty white. His eyes held more red than blue. His hair was matted to his head with sweat. Turning on the tap, he cupped his hands under the running water and brought them up to his mouth. He slurped some of the water, trying to wash the bitter taste of bile from his throat.

His stomach muscles had been given quite a workout, but he didn't feel terrible otherwise. It didn't feel like a flu or anything. Maybe Zack was right about him eating too fast. Cloud wasn't in the mood to hear 'told ya so', so he decided not to say anything to Zack. At least he was getting fed again.

Then he turned around to face the bathroom door. Yep, he still had _that_ to look forward to. A thick trail of undigested food led from just inside the doorway to the toilet, and he wasn't going to leave it there for Zack to find. He reached up to the high cupboard next to the shower and selected a lovely puke green hand towel.

After he'd finished cleaning up the floor, he peeled off the sweaty scrubs, deposited them in the hamper with the nasty towel, and started the shower. When the temperature was just right, he climbed in. The water pressure here was wonderful, so much better than the group showers and rusty water in the barracks. He leaned his arms and head against the wall, letting the water pound against his back, loosening the tension in his muscles.

A thumping on the door interrupted his pleasant haze. "Yo! Blondie!" Wendy's rough voice sounded through the wooden door. "Did you forget? Treadmill time!"

Cloud sighed and shut off the water. He hadn't forgotten, but his testing didn't start for two hours after dinner. Had it really been that long? Climbing out of the shower and pulling a towel from the shelf, he opened the door to Wendy's smug face. "Already?"

"Same time as always, kid. Come on, let's get you dressed."

Cloud didn't object to Wendy's help anymore. He wasn't injured and her rough treatment was no more than an annoyance. Moreover, he was weary and his stomach muscles ached; her help conserved the limited amount of energy he had, and he was going to need it for the treadmill.

Once he had been shoved into a clean set of scrubs, Wendy grabbed him by the arm with her blue gloved hand. Every step down the corridor felt like he was walking through mud, and he wondered if he had managed to absorb anything in the brief time the food was in his stomach. Cloud dragged himself along next to her, trying to keep up. She must have been walking faster than usual since they'd had a late start.

When they reached the treadmill room, she unlocked the door and waved him inside. Dr. Hyde was already there with his clipboards and pens and a fresh-faced assistant. He glanced up with disinterest. "Well, you know the drill. Onto the treadmill," he said.

Cloud stepped onto the treadmill and obligingly held up his shirt while the assistant connected half a dozen probes to his skin. When the belt started moving, he drearily began jogging. His steps were heavy and graceless on the platform. After about five minutes, his legs began to wobble. He used the railings to hold up some of his weight on his arms, and the trembling subsided for a bit, but his arms felt just as weak. Within another five minutes, the strength of both arms and both legs together wasn't enough to support him. They simply gave out, and he collapsed on the moving belt.

He was ejected from the base of the treadmill. He laid there limply on the floor, trying to catch his breath. Dr. Hyde frowned down at him. "How is it possible that your performance is getting worse, boy?"

Cloud was too exhausted to even muster any anger. "Because you haven't fed me in almost a week," he said wearily. "I can't keep pushing my body like this without food. Damn, I thought you were a doctor."

Dr. Hyde looked perplexed. "What are you talking about? All of our patients are fed three times a day."

Cloud summoned the strength to sit up. Despite the short run, he was dripping from the exertion. "Really? Because the orderlies said I wasn't allowed to eat on _your orders_. They said something about the first infusion causing some kind of reaction with food if I eat too soon."

"Don't be ridiculous," Hyde said dismissively. "I've seen them delivering both of your trays several times in the last week."

" _What_?" The cadet wanted to be indignant, but something in the back of his mind whispered: _Are you sure?_ Cloud shook his head, hard. "Then you're mistaken. Talk to your orderlies. They're not bringing me food, and they say it's on your orders!"

"Certainly, I'll speak to them," Hyde said. "But…are you certain this isn't a product of your mind?"

"I'm not making it up!" Cloud said, feeling overwhelmed. "I can barely manage ten minutes on the treadmill! Do you really think I'm lying?!"

Dr. Hyde considered him closely, tapping his pen against his lip thoughtfully. "I believe that you believe it's true. The mind is a powerful thing, you know. Did you ever consider that maybe your mind is causing your body to act weak?"

"What? No!" Cloud yelled, finally losing control, his hair grasped in his fists. He wasn't sure if he was shaking so hard from weakness or anger, but his emotions were on a roller coaster. His head felt fuzzy. He felt like screaming and crying and throwing things. The lack of control was as disconcerting as Hyde's suggestion.

The doctor pressed a button next to a speaker on the wall. "Send Wendy down to the tread room to collect the specimen, please."

Cloud pushed sweaty bangs away from his eyes to glare at the doctor. "What did you just call me?"

Dr. Hyde looked over his glasses at the boy on the floor. "I didn't call you anything," he said calmly.

"Yes you did! On the speaker, just now, you told Wendy to come collect the specimen!"

"I think you're delirious," Hyde said, peering over the spectacles with concern.

 _Blip-blip._

Wendy entered the room and hauled Cloud up by his arm. "Make sure he gets some water please, Wendy," Hyde directed. "And he may need some help with a shower."

Wendy pulled him out the door. "I don't need help showering!" Cloud protested. The door closed behind them. "I don't," he told Wendy, supporting his own weight with an effort. "I'm fine. I could use some food, though."

"Sorry, Blondie, doc says you can't have any."

* * *

Zack was getting increasingly worried about his roommate. Cloud claimed that he still wasn't getting fed. "Cloud, I just saw you eating yesterday. Remember? Jax brought us both our food at the same time."

Cloud looked instantly embarrassed. "Yeah, but I…" he sighed. "Right after you left, I got sick and threw it all up. Ok? You're probably right, I know, I ate too fast, but that's the only thing I've eaten all week!"

Zack really didn't know what to think. He couldn't imagine Cloud would purposely lie about something like that, but maybe the strain of this place was getting to him. Of course, Zack didn't think it was particularly stressful (other than the last time in the octo-room, which he was trying very hard _not_ to think about), but again, Cloud wasn't used to this kind of thing. Maybe he couldn't hack it in SOLDIER after all.

The disloyal thought left a bad taste in his mouth, and Zack gave himself a mental smack. "Alright, we'll try it again," he said, rallying his voice. "Hey, look, we'll be doing the infusions again next week, right? We eat all our meals together during the infusion week."

Cloud nodded slowly. "Ok. So only one more day," he said shakily. "I can handle one more day."

The next day, Zack and Cloud were again separated during meal times, but Zack was almost completely convinced that the problem was in Cloud's wiring. He just needed to be able to see it for himself so that he could convince Cloud of the truth.

The new week began. Both boys opened their eyes to the _blip-blip_ of their door. Dr. Hyde strolled in with his little black bag as usual. He ran through quick examinations on both of them and re-packed the tools in his bag. Cloud seemed to be shaking in anticipation of his food. "Alright, Cloud, you're first," Hyde said briskly. "The orderlies will be here to escort you shortly."

"Escort me where?" Cloud asked suspiciously.

"For your next round of testing, of course," the doctor said calmly.

"But…we just did the testing last week," Zack protested.

"Yes, well, we're doing it again this week," Hyde said. "Is that a problem?"

Zack looked between Cloud and the doctor. Cloud _was_ looking a little pale and exhausted. "Doc, can I talk to you, alone?"

Cloud frowned. "Seriously? What can't you say in front of _me_?" He seemed truly hurt by Zack's question.

"It's uh…don't take it the wrong way, buddy. It's personal," Zack said appeasingly.

Dr. Hyde sighed. "Fine. As soon as the orderlies come to collect Cloud, you can have a moment."

The three of them waited in awkward silence for a few more minutes, until a single blue-gloved orderly showed up. Cloud looked utterly defeated as he was led through the door, and it was killing Zack. "Ok, look," he said, as soon as the door closed behind them. "Cloud has been saying that he's not getting any food."

"Yes, he said the same to me," Hyde said with a frown. He crossed his arms in his lab coat. "It's absurd."

"Right," Zack said, feeling a flash of guilt for siding with the doctor. "But I'm sure I can talk some sense into him if I have some proof. Can't you just rearrange our schedules a little bit so we can eat together? I'll take some pictures of him eating with my phone."

Hyde studied Zack for several seconds. It seemed like an eternity to Zack. "I can't make any promises," the doctor finally said, "but I'll try to arrange it so that some of your meals are together. I'm counting on you to talk some sense into him, Zack."

Zack nodded gratefully. "I will. I know he'll believe it if it comes from me."

* * *

Dr. Hyde wasn't able to make the changes to their schedules that day, but the following day, he assured Zack that they could eat lunch together. It was a relief to hear. Cloud was really looking rough that morning, and he'd been taken for testing first thing.

He was waiting impatiently at the table when the noon hour finally rolled around. Jax strolled in with his two trays of food, setting them in front of Zack and Cloud with a flourish. Cloud immediately pulled off the cover.

"Remember, Cloud," Zack warned before he could dive in. "Don't eat too fast this time."

"Yeah, ok, fine," he said impatiently. However, he did take the time to use his silverware, and to chew and swallow each bite. It wasn't _slow_ by any means, but at least he wasn't inhaling it this time.

Zack discreetly pulled out his phone and snapped a picture. Unfortunately, he'd forgotten to turn off the flash. He winced at the bright light and hoped Cloud hadn't noticed. _Smooth, Zack. Really discreet._

"Uh, did you just take a picture of me _eating_?" Cloud asked.

Zack rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah. It's just so…in case you forget later."

His friend's face was a mishmash of expressions: anger, betrayal, hurt, and resignation. He didn't say anything, but he didn't have to. Zack felt every one of them like a kick to the gut. Cloud just shook his head and continued eating.

 _Blip-blip._

Wendy entered the room. "Yo, Zack. Time for your meeting with the prof."

Zack's eyes jumped between Cloud, Wendy, the food, and back again. "But I haven't even eaten yet. Can't it wait?"

Wendy snorted. "Yeah, no. I'm not telling Hojo that you were too busy for him." She grabbed Zack's arm with her blue glove and pulled him to his feet. He stood reluctantly.

"It'll be quick, Cloud, ok? I'll be _right back_ ," Zack said emphatically.

Cloud didn't look up. He just kept steadily eating. Apparently he was still upset about the picture. Zack allowed himself to be pulled out the door.

Wendy didn't seem to share his urgency to get there. She regulated his pace with her blue-gloved hand, and Zack knew it would only cause problems if he fought her. He had forgotten what a long walk it was to get to Hojo's office. When they arrived and the door slid smoothly into the wall, Zack walked quickly to the back of the chair and grabbed the top.

"What is it, Hojo?" he asked, words spilling out in a rush. Professor Hojo was writing something and didn't immediately look up. "I'm in a hurry," he said impatiently.

Hojo finished writing and set down his pen. "In the future, you will address me as 'Professor Hojo' or 'Sir'," he said crisply. "It's disrespectful not to use my title and I won't tolerate it."

Zack's hands clenched on the back of the chair. He really didn't want to waste time arguing. "I'm sorry, Professor Hojo," he said quickly. "What do you want to talk about?"

Hojo leaned back in his chair and folded his hands on the desk in front of him. "Have a seat, Zack. There's no need to rush."

Zack sat down in the chair to appease the professor, but he was in no less of a hurry. "I just got my lunch and it's getting cold," he said, the excuse sounding lame even to his own ears.

Dr. Hojo raised one thin brow and appraised the SOLDIER like an insect. The message was clear: he really didn't give a damn about Zack's food. Hojo outranked him, if barely, so Zack would have to play his game. He gripped the arms of the chair to channel his frustration, loosening them only when he felt the supporting wood begin to splinter.

"I merely wanted to find out how well you're adjusting to the enhancements," Hojo said calmly. "I did tell you that we would be having these monthly discussions. Do you…remember that conversation, Zack?" He raised his brows in mock concern.

Zack scowled at the not-so-subtle jab at his intelligence. To Professor Hojo, everyone was an imbecile, but Zack pushed back the irritation. Hojo was just trying to get under his skin. He couldn't let it distract him. "Fine," he said. "I feel fine."

The professor began writing on the notepad in front of him. It was shielded from Zack's view, but he was fairly certain that the oily man was just scribbling nonsense to take up more time. "Have you noticed any difference in your strength, speed, or senses?" he asked. He was speaking maddeningly slowly, as if to deliberately counter Zack's rushed words.

"You know, I really haven't," Zack said. "So I have nothing else to report." The professor stared at him, the slightest smirk tilting his lips as he took in Zack's tense posture and his grip on the armrests. He was purposely goading him. Zack scowled. "Anything else, _Sir_?" he asked, straining to keep his voice courteous.

"Hm. We'll have to make some adjustments to the infusions next week, I suppose," he said lightly. "You should certainly have been seeing some results, even with your previous enhancements."

Zack bit down on his tongue. _Play his game. Don't let him see how much you want to leave. Don't give him any more excuses to stall._

The professor's smile widened. Zack felt like the creepy old man could see right through him. Finally, Hojo leaned back in his chair. "That's all. You are excused."

Zack stood and bolted toward the door, and of course Hojo took his time to push the button to open it. Wendy stood on the other side, waiting like a faithful mutt. "Let's go," he muttered, brushing past her.

* * *

Cloud was curled up on the bed, facing the blank wall. His breathing was shallow and the hair at his temples was damp with sweat. He should have known this would happen. How convenient that Zack had to leave before Cloud forcefully ejected his lunch. He was starting to think this was all some kind of conspiracy. They wanted Zack to doubt him. They wanted Cloud to doubt himself. If so, it was working on all counts.

 _Blip-blip._

Cloud didn't bother to move when Zack came back into the room. "Hey, buddy," Zack said cautiously. "Did you…uh…did you finish eating already?"

Cloud sighed. "Yes, Zack. I finished eating and threw it all up again, but of course you weren't here to see it, so you still think I'm making things up." He recited the sentence dully.

Zack was silent, staring at his friend in shock. He approached the bed slowly and sat down next to Cloud's back. "Well, actually, you look pretty sick," he said quietly. "I believe you."

Cloud rolled over onto his back to meet his friend's eyes. The SOLDIER's words were an immense relief. He had been prepared for another heartfelt conversation about his reality. "You do?"

Zack wiped at the cooling sweat on his friend's face. "Yeah. But…are you sure you didn't eat any of those other times?"

Cloud's mouth turned bitter. He rolled away from his roommate again. "Fuck you, Zack."

"Cloud, I…I'm just trying to…I want to understand but…" Zack's voice was pleading. He couldn't seem to find a way to say it that didn't come across as 'I think you're lying or batshit crazy.' Finally, Cloud felt the bed shift as he stood up and moved away.

The next few days passed much the same, with their meals never falling at a time when they were together, and the orderlies refusing to bring him food because Dr. Hyde wouldn't allow it. Cloud didn't have it in him to give Zack the silent treatment for that long, but their conversations were strained with an undercurrent.

 _You don't believe me.  
_ I want to believe you but… _  
You think it's all in my head.  
_ I just don't know what to think.  
 _I can't believe you would take the word of some doctor over your best friend.  
_ I'm just trying to help! It's not your fault. You're sick.

In the meantime, Cloud's movements slowed to a snail's pace. The ache of hunger was unrelenting, but he was so lethargic that he escaped into the unfeeling bliss of sleep at all hours of the day. His tests were practically useless with the little bit of energy he had to give, but Hyde never mentioned it again. He simply wrote down the diminishing numbers and summoned Wendy to half-carry him back to his room.

On Friday, their schedules finally aligned to allow them to eat together again. Cloud was slumped against the wall, looking at Zack as they waited for their food to arrive. "You think they're gonna come get you after the food gets here again?" Cloud asked dully.

Zack got a determined look on his face. "No matter what, I'm not going."

Cloud snorted. His eyes were half-lidded. "Doesn't matter. Just means you'll be here to watch me puke."

"Then I'll help you get through it. And I'll have some fuel to confront Hyde."

Cloud smiled slightly. It was hard for him to stay mad at Zack. His intentions were good, even if he was a bit misguided.

Zack sat forward with a conspiratorial expression. "All right, here's what I'll do. I'm gonna go shut myself in the bathroom. If someone shows up looking for me, you tell them I'm got the shits and they'll just have to wait."

"Ok, but then what if I get sick and I need to get in there?"

"Then just come in, dude! I'm not really gonna be on the pot."

Cloud laughed for the first time in days. He was starting to get a little excited about their tiny rebellion.

 _Blip-blip._

Zack's eyes darted to the door and he jumped up. "Gotta go!" He ran to the bathroom and slammed the door as Jax walked in, pushing his rolling table with two trays.

Jax looked surprised. "Was that Zack?"

"Yeah," Cloud acknowledged. "He said something about his stomach and then bolted into the bathroom. I don't think I wanna go in there anytime soon."

Jax made a face. "Alright, where you sitting, kid?" Cloud scooted over to his place at the table. Jax placed one of the trays in front of him, the other on the opposite side of the table. "Well, if you need to get in there anytime soon…it was nice knowin' ya." The orderly grinned and left him to eat.

It was tempting to wolf the food down again. In fact, his body begged for him to inhale it, but he restrained himself. If he was going to get sick again, he didn't want to have any doubts about the cause.

As predicted, about ten minutes later, another _blip-blip_ heralded the entry of one of the green-scrub orderlies. "Hey, where's Zack?" the bald man asked.

"He's in the bathroom, but…I don't think you want to go near it. I've been hearing some weird noises coming out of there."

The orderly scowled and ignored his advice, stalking toward the bathroom door at the far side of the room and knocking with the back of his knuckles. "Yo, Zack? I've gotta take you down for a test."

"Uuunnggghhhh. Oh…oh gods, that's….uhhhh."

Cloud hid his grin and continued eating steadily. The orderly seemed to hesitate. "Are you ok, dude?" the man asked. "We need to go—"

"Ohhhhh. Uggh. Is there a vent or something we could open in here? The smell is…I think I'm gonna pass out." Zack was playing his role to the max, and Cloud had to muffle his laughter in a napkin.

"Maybe…we can reschedule…" the bald man said hesitantly.

"Mm. Good idea. Like, way, way later reschedule." Zack moaned.

Cloud's stomach started to twist in a knot. He swallowed his gorge and willed it to stay down, just long enough for the orderly to leave. It wasn't going to happen. He lunged for the garbage in the corner and wrapped his arms around it, forcefully ejecting everything he'd just consumed into the plastic bin.

The orderly looked at Cloud, wide-eyed. Between Zack stinking up the bathroom and Cloud puking in the corner, he was ready to get out. "I'll—I'll go get Hyde," he said, fleeing the room.

* * *

Zack heard the door slam shut. He laughed out loud. Damn, that was fun. He wanted to go celebrate with Cloud. "Dude, we—" Then he heard the new noise. "Oh, shit," he swore, flinging open the door. Cloud was in the far corner of the room, his body convulsing and heaving over the garbage can. He was leaning heavily on it, but the plastic wasn't made for that kind of pressure, especially tilted to one side. The bottom slid out and the can fell over.

Zack crossed the room in seconds, but when he reached his friend, he had no idea what to do. He picked up the can before the mess spilled all over the floor, but he could do nothing for Cloud. This wasn't a normal, everyday, slight-stomach-bug vomit. His whole body jerked with every heave. There was very little coming out anymore, but his body was still trying to desperately rid itself of something.

"Ok, let's…uh…let's get you to the bathroom, ok? You can at least lean on the toilet, yeah?" Zack looped one of Cloud's arms over his shoulders, grabbed onto the can, and stood up. He half-dragged his friend across the room, holding the trash can in front of him for any random bits of bile that were coming up along the way, and then lowered Cloud down next to the toilet.

Zack doubted that the kid even knew what was going on at that point. His face was dead white, soaked with sweat like the rest of him, and his eyes were rolling back. Zack had all kinds of training for dealing with blood loss, shock, and poison, but he had no idea what to do with this. Poison was probably the closest scenario, but he was pretty sure the cadet didn't need help getting _anything_ out of his body.

He did his best to prop Cloud up with his back against the tub, resting his head on the toilet seat. Cloud must have been at least slightly lucid, because he threw his arms up on the seat, too. Satisfied that he wasn't going to fall on the floor, at least for a few seconds, Zack stood and pulled down a hand towel from the shelf. He ran it under cold water and then knelt back down, wiping Cloud's face and neck with it while putting a supporting arm around his shoulders.

The heaving was gradually slowing, reduced from body-wracking to hiccupping spasms. Cloud's blue eyes, previously foggy and unfocused, began to look a little more normal. Finally, Zack heard the opening of the door he had expected long ago. Hyde's short little steps stomped across the room and into the little bathroom, where both of his patients sat on the floor.

"What is the meaning of his?" Dr. Hyde demanded.

Zack scowled up at him. "Cloud's sick," he said, irritated at having to point out the obvious.

"And?" Hyde put his hands on his hips. "What does that have to do with you?"

"I'm not going to leave him like this," Zack said angrily, his arm still supporting Cloud's shoulders. "We're done testing today. And can't you do something to help him? There's something really wrong with him!"

Dr. Hyde snapped his mouth closed. "I'll…take a look," he said hesitantly. "As soon as he's…done…you bring him back to his bed. I'll be by later to check on him."

"No way," Zack snapped. "You need to check him out now. If he pukes a little on the sheets, you'll just have to have it cleaned." With that, he stood and picked up Cloud as if he were a child. Cloud didn't protest. His head rolled up against Zack's chest.

Hyde looked like he'd been forced to swallow something bitter, but he followed Zack back to Cloud's bedside. Zack laid his friend down gently, then crossed his arms over his chest and stared down the doctor. Dr. Hyde sighed and pulled out the few tools he had available on his person: stethoscope, thermometer, and penlight. "A little space, please?" he asked Zack.

Zack obligingly stepped back, but not far. He wanted to be able to see what Hyde was doing, because at the moment, he didn't seem like he had Cloud's best interests at heart. The doctor finished his brief examination and nodded, putting the stethoscope back around his neck. Cloud seemed at least coherent now, his eyes flickering between Zack and Dr. Hyde.

"His pulse is a little fast, but that's to be expected. He's probably a bit dehydrated. Pupillary reactions are normal and temperature is fine. He should be feeling better in a few minutes. Now, are you satisfied, Zack? Can we get started on your next test?"

"No," Zack said flatly. "I told you, we're done for today."

Dr. Hyde's eyes darkened. He looked beyond irritated now. If Zack were easily intimidated, it would have been a good time for him to back down. The two men locked eyes in a silent battle of wills.

"Zack," Cloud spoke up, his voice hoarse but otherwise sounding normal. "I'm fine. Just go do your test."

Zack's eyes shifted to him. "But you—"

"I said I'm _fine_ ," Cloud interrupted sternly. "I'm just gonna sleep for a little bit. I'll see you when you get back." He seemed to be trying to tell his friend something, but Zack didn't know what. In any case, he was clearheaded enough to manage by himself for a bit.

Zack sighed. Cloud was the only person for whom he would back down from a challenge like that. But after seeing that violent reaction to eating, he was feeling awfully guilty, willing to do just about anything to make amends. He pressed his lips into a tight line and looked at Hyde. "I'll do your test, but no more for him today. He needs rest."

Dr. Hyde looked triumphant. "Fair enough. Come with me, then."

Zack reached down and ruffled Cloud's hair. "I'll be back, kid," he said.

"Don't call me kid," Cloud muttered, pulling the covers up over himself.

* * *

It took approximately 3.5 seconds after the door closed behind the two men before Cloud was unconscious. Getting sick like that was worse than starving. It was exhausting. There were various other pains to replace the hunger pain, which rejoined them almost immediately afterwards. He no longer had the stores of energy to get through it, but his body tried to use them anyway.

The next time he opened his eyes, Zack was back, sitting on his own bed, watching Cloud sleep. "You know that's really creepy," he mumbled.

Zack smiled, looking relieved to see him with his eyes open. "Hey. How ya feelin'?"

"About the same as before," Cloud said, yawning widely. He stretched his arms above his head and then coughed dryly. "Oh. Gods. And _ripe_."

Zack laughed and stood up. "Yeah, you were really sweaty. Need help getting in the shower?"

Cloud snorted. "I'll manage, Wendy." He sat up and rubbed his eyes, stretching his legs off the side of the bed. Why did everything have to _hurt_ so much?

"Hey now!" Zack protested. "I'm way more gentle than Wendy. I have dozens of witnesses who will testify—"

"Uh, no thanks. I don't need to see your little black book, Zack." Cloud got to his feet and lumbered unsteadily toward the bathroom. He knew exactly where his friend had been going with that statement.

* * *

Zack's smile faded as soon as the bathroom door closed behind Cloud. Although they'd defaulted back to their usual banter, he was still worried. Cloud's 'I threw up' statement didn't really cover what had happened that afternoon. That was more like a violent, full body war against lunch. The thought that had Zack kicking himself was that he should have known. Cloud had a tendency to downplay things when he was hurting. The weekend after the Honeybee should have been evidence enough of that.

 _They were both avid gamers, and most of Saturday morning had been spent on video games. Gladiators had been fun at first, but Cloud was probably sick of getting his ass kicked. Zack's reaction speed made him a formidable opponent at pretty much any game where speed mattered, and of course that was the only kind he owned._

 _"Let's go somewhere," Zack said suddenly, looking at his friend._

 _Cloud took the distraction as an opportunity to beat up Zack's avatar, but once he had destroyed the little pixelated man, he didn't hesitate to put down the controller. "Sure. Where do you wanna go?"_

 _Zack grinned wickedly. "It's a surprise."_

 _"No way," Cloud said, laughing. "Not after your surprise the other night."_

 _"I promise, nothing like that," Zack said, standing up and digging in the front closet for his shoes. "It'll be fun."_

 _Cloud sighed, but his smile was tolerant. "Fine. But if this turns out to be horrible, I'll never trust you to make plans again."_

 _"Deal!" Zack said, tossing Cloud his shoes._

 _Thirty minutes later, Cloud looked up doubtfully at the building. "Cap'n Pirate's Bouncy Adventure?"_

 _"Yep. Trust me, it'll be epic."_

 _"Aren't we a little old for bouncy houses?" he asked skeptically as they went inside._

 _Zack looked at him like he'd uttered blasphemy and refused to dignify it with a response. They paid for their tickets and entered the arena, and sure enough, it was mostly young kids bouncing around with little foam swords in their hands._

 _The actual bounce area was huge, encompassing the entire room. Zack held out a foam sword to Cloud, who just looked at it and let it fall to the ground. "Not going to defend yourself?" Zack asked. *Thwack* He smacked Cloud with his own foam sword._

 _"Zack…" Cloud said. "Are you serious?"_

 _*Thwack* " I never joke about swords." *Thwack*_

 _Cloud finally picked up his silly little foam sword. He had do something to defend himself, didn't he? As soon as he picked it up, the chase was on. Zack took one more swipe and bounced away, flipping himself backwards, propelled several feet with the help of the bouncy floor. Cloud ran after him, but the unstable floor made running difficult._

 _"Come on, haven't you ever been in one of these?" Zack laughed, watching the blond wobble across the floor. "You can't walk, you've gotta_ bounce _!"_

 _After a few minutes, Cloud got the hang of the bouncing. It was actually thrilling, flying so high in the air. He laughed out loud and sprang at Zack, flipping over the top of him and pummeling his face with the sword as he passed. "Wha—hey!" Zack said._

 _Cloud gave an evil cackle as he landed behind Zack, flipping away as Zack took a retaliatory swipe. A few of the kids had stopped bouncing to watch the two talented swordsmen flipping around with ease, moving so fast that they were hard to follow. They were trying to stick to one corner to avoid trampling the smaller kids, and one particularly awestruck little boy stood in the very corner, watching with rapt attention. He was about the same age as the majority of the kids in there, but he was particularly small and had gotten tired of being pushed around by the other kids. Cloud held his hands up in a 'T' and gradually slowed his bouncing._

 _"What? There's no timeout in a sword fight!" Zack protested, giving him an extra undefended swat._

 _Cloud ignored him and made his way over to the kid in the corner. "Hey," he whispered, motioning for the kid to come closer. "Want to hit this big buffoon?" The little boy's eyes grew wider and he nodded emphatically. "Ok, climb up on my back. Then you take_ both _swords and pummel him." The kid's shy smile became a gap-toothed grin. He climbed on Cloud's back and took both foam swords, his arms resting on the cadet's shoulders. "You ready?"_

 _"Ready!" the kid whispered back._

 _Cloud bounced over to Zack, and the boy swung both swords wildly. Zack reacted dramatically when the first one hit him (and Cloud ignored all the accidental smacks he was getting to the face himself), throwing himself backwards onto the bouncy floor. But one bounce on his back and then he was up on his feet again. The little boy's cackle made them both laugh out loud._

 _"Not fair!" Zack bellowed. "If you get a champion, I get to choose one too! I choose…YOU!" Zack pointed at a little girl standing on the sidelines._

 _The girl pointed at herself and mouthed, "me?"_

 _"Yes, you! If you're willing to accept the challenge, of course," Zack said, dropping to one knee in front of her._

 _"Yee-haw!" The girl yelled unexpectedly, jumping onto his back._

 _Zack burst out laughing and handed her his sword, narrowing his eyes playfully at the blond cadet and the little boy whispering furiously. "They're strategizing over there," he said to the girl on his back. "You got a plan?"_

 _"Yeah," the girl said boldly. "Bounce over to them and hit a lot!"_

 _"Solid plan," Zack agreed. "Alright, let's see if we can catch them by surprise." From his squatting position, Zack suddenly lunged up and jumped at the others. They were indeed taken by surprise, and the girl got a couple of good solid hits to Cloud's face before they bounced again, their momentum forcing him to jump over the top of Cloud and the boy._

 _The little girl's death grip on Zack's hair told him that it might have been a little too much for her, though, so he toned it down a little. He needed those hairs._

 _They played for hours, switching kids every 10 minutes or so, since everyone wanted a turn once they saw the first two kids riding the 'pirate ships'. Cloud laughed so hard that his stomach ached. It was a blast, until one particularly big boy jumped on his back. His legs were pretty tired already, but the kid deserved a turn, too, so Cloud stood up and bounced tentatively. He couldn't jump terribly high, and Zack and the girl on his back were wiping the floor with them, rapidly bouncing up, swatting him, and ducking away._

 _The smaller kids were able to lean and swing in any direction without impacting Cloud or Zack's trajectory, but this bigger boy was a different story. He lurched to the side to dodge a swipe and his weight pulled both of them over. Cloud tried to move his foot to catch them, but it landed wrong and they crashed to the bouncy floor._

 _The kid bounced on his side and landed harmlessly a few feet away, but Cloud was clenching his teeth in pain. Zack stopped bouncing. "You ok, man?"_

 _Cloud nodded, but the color draining from his face and the corded muscles of his neck said otherwise. Zack gently lowered the girl to the ground. "Alright, that's enough for today. Thank you, young piratey lass," Zack said formally, bowing to her. She giggled and bounced away._

 _Zack made his way over to Cloud and the boy who was trying to climb on his back again, even though the cadet was sitting on his butt. "Not right now," Cloud said to the kid, softening it with a smile. "Pirate ships need breaks too."_

 _The kid pouted and bounced off. "Seriously, you ok?" Zack asked._

 _"Yeah, it's fine," Cloud said dismissively. "Just landed on my ankle funny."_

 _"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm starving," Zack said, helping Cloud to his feet. "Let's get out of here." Zack noticed that his friend was limping slightly as they reached the parking lot, but trying to hide it whenever he was looking. "Hey, we can go to the infirmary and have someone take a look at that," he said, eyeing the ankle of Cloud's pants._

 _"Ok, first? I said it's fine," Cloud said. "Second, I'm no longer enrolled here, so I don't think they're going to treat me in the infirmary." Zack looked at him skeptically. "Seriously, I'm fine," Cloud said. "Let's go get some food."_

 _He was pretty good at hiding it, and Zack finally let it go. He might not have ever known how bad it was if he hadn't woken up in the middle of the night and found himself craving leftover pizza._

 _As much as Cloud had tried to pretend that he wasn't hurt too badly, he didn't believe it himself. How could he, with that giant purple thing glaring back at him? He was asleep on the couch, but had found himself a bag of ice (now a bag of water) and a pillow to prop his leg up._

 _"Holy hell!" Zack said loudly, and Cloud was startled awake. "I thought you said it wasn't that bad!"_

 _It took a second for Cloud to figure out what Zack was talking about. "Oh, that," he said, sitting up and shaking his pant leg back over the top of the massively swollen ankle. "It isn't that bad. I just noticed that it was a little swollen, that's all."_

 _"A little—" Zack's jaw dropped in disbelief. "Ok, you know what? Sephiroth has some cure materia." With that, he started toward the apartment door._

 _"Zack!" Cloud called after him. "It's the middle of the night!"_

 _Zack paused with his hand on the doorknob. "Oh. Right. Yeah, he really doesn't like it when you mess up his routine." He spun back around to glare at Cloud. "Fine, but as soon as we wake up in the morning, I'm going over to get it."_

 _"You don't need to bother him," Cloud said, looking down shyly. "It will get better on its own."_

If there's one thing Zack should have remembered from that story, it was Cloud's stubbornness to show weakness or pain. So if Cloud looked like he was exhausted, he wasn't playing it up. In fact, he had probably been trying his damnedest to hide it from Zack, which meant that he was in even worse shape than he appeared.

*Thunk* A loud noise from the bathroom brought Zack to his feet. He walked closer to the door. "Cloud? Are you ok in there?" he called out.

No answer.

"Cloud? I'm gonna come in if you don't say something."

He waited a beat and then opened the door. The sound of the shower echoed through the steamy room. Zack grabbed the shower curtain and yanked it aside. Cloud was lying in the tub, blinking at the spray hitting him in the face, looking confused. "Zack?"

"Did you fall down?" Zack asked.

Cloud braced his arms on the sides of the tub to pull himself to a sitting position. "I guess I must have," he said, still looking lost.

Zack reached over and shut off the water. "Ok, let's get you out of there." It was impossible not to notice how damn skinny the kid had gotten, and the guilt stabbed at Zack. It wasn't as noticeable in his baggy scrubs, but still, Zack felt like he should have seen it sooner. He grabbed an arm and gently helped his friend to his feet. Cloud stood there shakily, and Zack didn't dare let go as he reached up to pull down a towel.

"I can walk," Cloud said, giving him an annoyed look as his friend helped him step over the edge of the tub.

"Yeah, well, you said you could shower on your own, too."

Despite the dirty look he was getting, Zack refused to let go until they'd reached Cloud's bed. He helped him sit down on the edge. But when he picked up the scrubs, Cloud snatched them away angrily. "Zack, _please_. I'm fine. I can get myself dressed without your mothering."

Zack held up his hands and backed away. Cloud did manage to get his clothes on by himself, but then laid back on his bed like the effort had worn him out. Zack scowled and stood up in front of the camera. "Yo! Send Hyde down here. We have a problem."

He figured the more vague he was, the more likely Hyde would come to investigate sooner. If he told him that Cloud was sick, he probably wouldn't bother coming at all. Even so, it was over half an hour before Dr. Hyde showed up, and by then, Cloud had fallen back asleep. He twitched slightly at the sound of the door opening, but didn't wake.

"Yes, Zack? What's the problem?" Dr. Hyde said impatiently.

Zack's brows lowered. "The problem is that Cloud isn't getting any food."

Hyde waved his hand dismissively. "We've been through this. He's just trying to get attention or sympathy or something. You've seen that he's getting food."

Zack put his hands on his hips and stood taller, looking down on the balding man. "Yeah, the times I've been here to see him eat, he gets really sick and can't keep it down. Have you even looked at him? He's lost like 10 pounds!"

The doctor sighed and glanced over at Cloud, then pulled Zack to the side. "Look, I don't know how to tell you this, but your friend is playing you. I spoke to the orderlies. They said he refuses to eat and sends back most of his meals uneaten. Then he's forcing himself to throw up when he has to eat in front of you."

Zack shook off his hand. "Why would he even do that? That doesn't make sense!"

"Because he has…some kind of psychological issues. I've been monitoring him closely, but I'm not sure how to get through to him. Zack, I'm afraid that we're going to need to put him on some kind of IV feeding."

Zack looked over at his roommate uncertainly. "Are you sure that's necessary? I mean, he _wants_ to eat."

"That's what he says," the doctor said gently, "but his actions say otherwise."

"Maybe," Zack said, unconvinced.

"We'll have to restrain him," Dr. Hyde said gravely, "but he may still be able to get to it. Zack, it's up to you to convince him that it's in his best interest to leave the IV alone."

Zack ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't know. I don't really feel comfortable forcing him."

Dr. Hyde leveled him with a look. "If you truly cared about him, you would be able to make the hard decisions, even if it makes you uncomfortable. It's what's best for him."

Zack looked over at his friend again. He looked so fragile and exhausted. The doctor was right. He had to do what was best for Cloud. He set his jaw and nodded. "Alright, fine. I'll make sure he keeps it in. Just make him get better."

* * *

Cloud opened his eyes groggily. They were sore and scratchy. He raised an arm to rub them, but was halted with a loud clang of metal. Automatically, he tried the other arm, and the same loud clang banished the fog in an instant. His eyes opened wide, landing on the metal cuffs linking both wrists to the bars of the bed.

He sat up quickly, taking in the clear plastic tube running to the inside of his elbow. It looked just like the IV for the infusions, but why was he cuffed to the bed? He looked over at Zack, who was sitting on his own bed, watching him calmly.

"Zack! What's going on?"

"Don't worry," Zack said. "It's just some nutrients and calories and stuff, since you're having trouble keeping food down." His voice was calm, but for some reason he looked wary.

Cloud shifted uncomfortably. At the very least, he would hopefully get some strength back from this, but he was becoming aware of the ache pervading his body. "Oh. That's good, I guess," he said, grimacing. "But what's with the handcuffs? And…why does it hurt so much?"

Zack's brows furrowed. "What hurts?" he asked, ignoring the first question. "The IV?"

"No," Cloud said. "My body. It's like everything aches, but more intense. Like a really bad flu or something." Even as he said it, the discomfort increased, and he twitched and grimaced with the shot of pain flowing through his nerves.

Zack looked away. "It doesn't hurt, Cloud," he said softly.

"What?" Cloud was momentarily surprised enough to lose the pained expression on his face, but he couldn't keep it off when he next shot of pain made his whole body jerk on the bed. "Fuck, what is _in_ this thing?" he gasped, looking up at the greenish fluid in the IV bag.

Zack's face hardened with resolve and he looked up. "It's something you need to get better. It doesn't hurt. It's just in your head."

"What?!" Cloud repeated, even more shocked to hear the rest of the explanation. "How can you say that?"

"I talked to Dr. Hyde. I know what you've been doing with your meals," he said gently.

Cloud gritted his teeth and tried not to react to the shocks of pain. "You already knew that, Zack. You know I've thrown up every time I've gotten food in the last two weeks, which is exactly three times." The next shock caught him by surprise, and he twitched violently. They were getting worse.

"Yeah," Zack said uncomfortably. "About that—"

"Ow! Damn it, Zack, help me get this thing out," Cloud said, jerking uselessly against the cuffs.

"No," Zack said firmly. "You have to leave it in, Cloud. It's the only way you'll get better."

"Zack, whatever this is, it isn't TPN. It—" he winced again. "It's really hurting me."

"TPN?" Zack asked, looking confused.

"It's not whatever Hyde told you!" Cloud said, losing his temper. He couldn't get to the IV with his other hand, but the IV line was in range of his mouth. He lunged for the clear plastic tube with his teeth, but Zack was too quick. He sprang over to his side and held the line out of his reach. "Damn it, Zack! Help me!" he cried, his face crumpling in pain.

The SOLDIER was obviously having a hard time watching Cloud struggling, but he shook his head resolutely. "I'm sorry, man. I can't let you pull it out."

The pain was intensifying. Cloud felt like his insides were being burned with acid. He struggled and fought against the cuffs for a few fruitless moments, then swung his feet around, catching Zack by surprise with a sharp kick to the jaw. It was pointless, he knew. He couldn't really hurt a SOLDIER with a socked foot, but at least he communicated his desperation. He had fallen half off the bed, his arms held above him by the rails. He squirmed and thrashed, turning his body to kick at Zack, who stayed just out of reach.

Feeling helpless and betrayed, every cell in his body burning, Cloud burst into tears. He stopped struggling, not even bothering to put himself back onto the bed. There was no getting comfortable anyway. Shame washed over him, but he couldn't stop crying. His body twitched and spasmed, but he had so little energy to begin with that soon he just let himself hang there, defeated.

Zack's feet moved into his field of vision. Cloud didn't react. He couldn't think about anything but the pain, and a familiar exhaustion was starting to wash over him. He felt muscular arms slip under his body, carefully lifting him up and settling him back on the bed. Zack's eyes hovered over him, swimming with guilt. "I'm so sorry. I can't let you take it out. It's for your own good."

The weakness was overwhelming. Cloud felt like his body was shutting down. When the darkness came, he welcomed it.


	6. Loyalty

**It's time for their evening drink, but Dr. Hyde hasn't shown up. Professor Hojo is still sitting at his desk, writing endlessly. Doubtless he has many brilliant thoughts to share. I'm thankful that I'll never have to read that drivel.**

 **Finally, Dr. Hyde's familiar knock pattern sounds, and Hojo presses the button under his desk. The door slides open soundlessly, and Hyde enters with several sheets of paper in his hands.**

 **"Good evening, Professor," Hyde says calmly, but his eyes are swirling with his thoughts.**

 **"About time, Hyde," Hojo snaps, setting down his pen, although his reprimand lacks the bite it once held.**

 **"Yes," the doctor said distractedly. "Interesting results from the specimens' most recent blood work." Hojo stands and moves to pour himself a drink while Hyde sits in his usual chair, his eyes flickering over the paper in front of him. "The S-cells are bonding exceptionally well for subject S-16, but S-15 seems to be rejecting them." Now that he has started his own research, Dr. Hyde has begun addressing them by their numbers, much to Hojo's delight. I suppose it's to distance himself from them, now that he's truly seeing them as specimens, not difficult patients in his care.**

 **"Really?" Hojo says, his interest piqued. "Why is that, I wonder?"**

 **"I suspect it's because 15 has been through the mako treatments as part of the SOLDIER program. His cells are already mutated. The S-cells were designed to bond with normal human cells, were they not?" It's clearly a rhetorical question. Hyde knows Hojo's research inside and out.**

 **"Yes," Hojo says thoughtfully, stroking his chin. "But I had still expected the S-cells to mutate them further. That's an unexpected development."**

 **"How would you like to proceed?" Hyde asks, handing the papers over to Hojo.**

 **"You used the mako fortified solution on 16 today, did you not?" Hojo scanned over the paper in his hand.**

 **"Yes. I'll check his blood again tomorrow and see how it bonded," Hyde says.**

 **"Good. Start 15 on it as well. We may need an even higher concentration of mako to affect him, but let's start with this."**

 **Dr. Hyde nods and taps some keys on a small device that he pulls from his pocket. I've seen him use it before. I think it's just notes to himself, but I'm surprised that the professor allows it at all, considering how tightly protected he keeps all the information on the experiment. He could easily be sending that information outside the facility. It's just another sign of his unusual trust in the doctor.**

 **Professor Hojo sips at his drink and looks at Hyde appraisingly. "And how have your psychological experiments been going?" he asks lightly.**

 **Hyde's eyes light up. He sits up in his chair, getting visibly excited. "Oh, it's fascinating, Horace. I've already watched the footage. I was able to get 15 to force 16 to take in the fortified mako solution."**

 **A smile quirks the corner of Hojo's mouth. "Did 16 react as painfully as the others?"**

 **"Indeed, maybe even moreso," Hyde says excitedly. I can't tell if he's starting to enjoy inflicting pain, or if he's just happy because of what it says about Zack's reaction to the experiment.**

 **"And still 15 made him do it?" Hojo sits back with a satisfied smirk. "Maybe their bond is not as strong as you believed, Hyde. Or maybe 15 has a sadistic streak in him."**

 **Dr. Hyde chuckled. "Unfortunately, no. I convinced him that 16 had a psychological condition and that it had to be done to help him get better. I think it was almost as torturous for 15 to watch."**

 **The professor's smile widened. "My, my, you are even more of a twisted genius than I thought, Horace." Dr. Hyde beams in return.**

 **I've already made a second copy of the footage spanning that time frame. I know the sick bastard will want to watch it. He collects pain like porn.**

* * *

Chapter 5: Loyalty

Zack stood over Cloud for several minutes, making sure he was actually asleep. He couldn't see any way to hook the IV cord out of Cloud's reach, and he didn't want to let it go until he was sure that he wasn't faking.

The thought hurt him. Why would Cloud do something like that? Was he looking for attention? If so, from whom? That didn't seem right. Maybe being stuck in this room was causing some kind of psychosis. Cloud didn't have enough authority to turn down missions, but Zack did. Maybe he could order them out of this experimental treatment, if it was really causing mental issues for the cadet.

Of course, Cloud's mental status would cause some problems for his future with SOLDIER, if Zack used that as a reason to get him out of there. Even if he didn't, Dr. Hyde might report it back to the academy. Either way, things weren't looking good for Cloud's career.

Zack finally released the IV line and returned to sit on his own bed, dropping his head into his hands. He still felt sick from the memory of Cloud's screaming and begging. It was one of the hardest things he'd ever done, not giving in to his friend. He was certain of one thing, though: Cloud was _not_ acting. The kicking and thrashing and palpable anguish weren't fake. Cloud honestly believed he was in that much pain, which was just as bad as real pain, wasn't it?

He wondered if Cloud would ever forgive him. Maybe someday he would be able to understand why Zack had to do it, but the betrayal in Cloud's eyes had stabbed him to the core. Zack stretched out on the bed and stared at his roommate. His wrists were already turning purple from struggling against the handcuffs. It made him think of that damn purple ankle that Cloud had tried so hard to hide.

 _It was the middle of the night, but they were both awake – Zack because of his relentless appetite, and Cloud because Zack had yelled at him about hiding his ankle. So they had cold pizza together. For some reason, cold pizza always tasted better in the middle of the night, and that particular night, Zack could've sworn it was better than when it was fresh and hot._

 _He had almost forgotten about Cloud's drunken chase in the hallway, but his friend's awkward reaction to the comment about Sephiroth gave him an idea. It was incorporated into the Get-Cloud-to-stay-another-term plan that he'd already been cooking up. But just to make sure he was right, Zack decided to drop his name a few more times to gauge his reaction._

 _He took a drink of his beer – because what goes better with middle-of-the-night pizza than middle-of-the-night beer? – and leaned back on his hands. "So, I've been thinking, maybe next term Seph can join our sword training sessions."_

 _Cloud's blue eyes got wide, but then he looked away. "Zack, there isn't going to be another term."_

 _Zack pretended not to hear. "You're getting pretty good already, and that way he can help me out, too. I'm not really making any progress anymore, you know, because there's no one good enough to teach me..." Zack flashed a smile at his friend's unimpressed snort. "Except maybe Sephiroth. He might know one or two things that I don't."_

 _Cloud gaped at him. "Are you kidding? I bet you couldn't even hold the Mesamune, Zack. It's taller than you are."_

 _Zack frowned. "Are you sure? It's only like 6 feet."_

 _"It's 7 feet, 3 inches, but it only measures 6 feet, 6 inches tall because of the curve."_

 _Smiling slyly, Zack decided to push it a little further. "Whatever. It's probably easier to wield than the Buster Sword. He's not_ that _good."_

 _Cloud's pizza made a loud slapping sound as he dropped it back on the box. He looked at Zack like he'd just announced his intention to shave his head and take a vow of celibacy. "Not that good? Are you crazy? Haven't you heard about all the stuff he did in the Wutai war? There were like entire armies that he took out single-handedly! He sliced up 50 tanks before anyone managed to get a single shot off! He doesn't even bother blocking bullets because he—why are you smiling like that?" Cloud demanded._

 _"Just…uh…no reason," Zack said, cramming pizza into his mouth to hide his grin._

 _Cloud sighed and dropped back against the couch. "Doesn't matter. I'm sure he's too busy to train with guys like us, anyway."_

 _Zack scoffed. "I think you forget who I am, kid."_

 _"Uh huh. Zackary Fair, youngest SOLDIER ever to be made First Class," Cloud recited in a bored voice._

 _"Right! Well, since they set up the program, anyway. Seph and Angeal and Genesis don't really count, because they were there at the beginning. They didn't have to work their way up like I did."_

 _Cloud laughed out loud. "Oh, excuse me. Youngest SOLDIER ever to be made First Class, except for all the guys who were there at the beginning of the program, and that guy from 3b, and that foreign kid with the funky hair, and Debra from accounting and –" He had to stop there because he was getting pelted with pillows and the beer was in danger. He picked up his beer to shelter it and cackled madly, but it was abruptly cut off when he lifted his leg to block a flying pillow. Pain shot up from his ankle and he hissed through his teeth._

 _"Ooh! Shit. Are you ok?" Zack sat up on his knees, feeling instantly guilty for forgetting about his friend's injury._

 _Cloud laughed it off, lowering it gently back onto the arm of the couch. "Yeah. It's fine. You win that round, but only because I forfeit."_

 _The party wound down pretty quickly after that. A fresh bag of ice was fetched and they both went back to sleep, but Zack woke up a few hours later to implement the next part of his plan. He snuck out into the living room and checked to make sure his friend was still out. Cloud was snuggled into the couch, his artfully arranged spikes mashed into the corner. Time to go get Sephiroth._

Zack looked over at the spikes mashed around his friend's face now. It seemed like he'd aged so much since then. The metal encircling his wrists really marred the image, too. Zack frowned as he looked closer. Something was different about Cloud's hair. It almost looked wet. He picked up his phone and turned on the flashlight, trying to get a better look at him in the dim room. A thick sheen of sweat glinted off the light. The sheet underneath him was darker all the way around his body.

"What the…?" He rolled onto his feet and took the few steps across to the other bed, reaching out to touch pale white skin.

Whiter than usual, and _hot_. Zack could see the drops of sweat sliding down Cloud's arms and sides before soaking into the sheet. Zack was no expert, but it didn't seem to him like a person should ever be that hot.

He looked up at the camera and waved his arm. "Hey! Hey, send the doc down here! There's something wrong with Cloud!"

"Cloud, wake up!" Zack said, turning back to his friend and shaking his shoulder. For some reason, it seemed really important at that moment that Cloud be conscious. "Hey!" he yelled louder. "Wake up!" Cloud's head rolled to the side and jiggled with Zack's shaking. With a feeling of panic welling up in his chest, Zack slid one hand behind Cloud's head and lifted it slightly. It was soaked, and even the sweat that was supposed to be cooling him was unbearably hot. Zack glanced up at the camera again. He had no way of knowing if anyone was on their way and the kid was frying.

There was no way Cloud could fake this. Zack's eyes traced the plastic tube from his arm up to the bag. Now that he thought about it, the fluid did look an awful lot like the mako infusions. That had to be the problem. He had to stop the poison they were pumping in to him. He felt a flash of guilt, remembering Cloud's words. He'd been trying to tell him that the fluid wasn't what Hyde had said, and Zack had been the one to force it on him.

Zack grabbed the plastic line and gave one hard yank, removing the tape and pulling out the needle all at once. Cloud remained pale and motionless. Zack raked his brain frantically for something else he could do. He had to find a way to get his temperature down. A childhood memory tugged at him. He'd had a really high fever once. His mom had put him into the bathtub to cool him down.

The door still wasn't opening and Zack was tired of waiting, but there was still the problem of the handcuffs. He grabbed the cuff around Cloud's left wrist with one hand, the one around the bar with the other, and pulled as hard as he could.

It was no good. He couldn't get enough leverage and the chain was surprisingly strong. Zack let go and stood back. There had to be a weak point somewhere. His eyes landed on the bar holding the other link of the handcuffs. It was about as thick as his thumb, welded in place at the top and the bottom, but he tapped against the bar itself, confirming that it was hollow. He should be able to break it. Bracing his feet against the outside of the railing, he wrapped both hands around the bar and yanked with all his might.

It was probably a bit of overkill. He had been afraid that it would just bend if he didn't pull hard enough, but it snapped at both the top and bottom. He fell on the floor with the loose bar now in his hands. Unfortunately, the handcuff was still on the bar, so he also gave Cloud a good, hard jolt on his arms. Zack winced and got quickly to his feet, dropping the detached bar and pulling the bed away from the wall. With access to that railing, he repeated the process, except he pulled at just the top this time instead of the whole bar. The top snapped off of the railing easily, and he slid the cuff over the top of it.

"Ok, buddy. Here we go," Zack said. He always felt better saying things aloud, whether there was anyone there to hear him or not. Maybe it was a habit from radio communication on missions. Some dispatchers complained that he talked too much, but others appreciated the play-by-play. The recordings made it easier to write up the report later.

He slid an arm under Cloud's knees and one under his arms and picked him up. The heat was coming off in waves through his scrubs. Getting more worried by the second, Zack ran to the bathroom and set him in the bathtub, then plugged the drain and turned the shower on cold.

Cloud didn't react at all to the water hitting him in the face. Unsure what else he could do, Zack paced back and forth in the small bathroom. The guilt was nagging at his conscience, and he was avoiding having to look at Cloud. It was human nature to avoid pain, but he had to be better than that. He had no right to avoid feeling bad for his actions. He forced himself to look at the pale, motionless form, then dropped down to his knees next to the tub.

"Come on, man, wake up. I'm sorry I didn't believe you. I'm sorry I forced that on you. I was just trying to help, but I fucked up. Again." Zack grimaced and looked away. "I swore I wouldn't hurt you again, but I…" He dropped his head, feeling useless and helpless.

Finally, the door clicked open and Dr. Hyde strode casually in. "About time!" Zack yelled, jumping to his feet. "Can't you get here any faster? There's something seriously wrong with him!"

Dr. Hyde didn't seem to notice Zack's tone. He continued his leisurely pace across the room to the bathroom. Zack backed up to the vanity to let the doctor pass. An irritated frown marring his face, Dr. Hyde turned off the shower. He pulled an electronic thermometer from the pocket of his lab coat and inserted the plastic end into Cloud's ear while Zack gripped the porcelain of the sink almost hard enough to crack it.

The thermometer beeped, and Dr. Hyde peered at the electronic display. "It's barely 105, Zack. He's fine."

Zack laughed incredulously. "Fine? That's not fine! Besides that, it's probably gone down since I put him in here."

Dr. Hyde stood to his full height and looked Zack in the eye. Zack had to give him credit for not faltering under his gaze. He was quite a bit taller than the doctor and could be damn intimidating if he wanted to be.

"Zack," he began sternly. "Are you a doctor?"

"No but I—"

"Do you know anything about the body?"

"Not really, but—"

"Then let me do my job. The boy needs nutrients. The fever is just his body's reaction to the food after being starved for so long."

Zack was skeptical about that statement, but as Hyde had pointed out, he was not a doctor. "But…isn't that dangerous?"

"A slight fever is nothing to be afraid of," Dr. Hyde said dismissively.

" _Slight_? That's not—"

"Zackary!" Dr. Hyde took on a commanding tone that he clearly expected to be obeyed. "You will stand down immediately. I'm going to call Wendy, and then we're going to have to put the IV back in. We'll probably need to start it over again because the formula is time-released."

Zack's lips pressed into a hard line. Even without the medical knowledge to back him up, he had a bad feeling about this. That IV had put Cloud into this state, and no matter the reason, it wasn't safe for him to have a fever that high. Something wasn't right. Not with Hyde, not with Hojo, not with this entire place. "No," he said quietly. "I swear, if you try to put him back on that shit, I'll—"

"You'll _what_?" Hyde interrupted.

Zack lifted his chin, looking down at Dr. Hyde. "Try it, and you'll find out," he said coldly.

Hyde held his eye for a few more seconds before shaking his head and pushing past Zack. "I don't have time for this nonsense." He walked back out to the wall phone in the room and picked up the receiver.

Zack went back by the tub and put his hand on Cloud's arm. It was still alarmingly hot, but it did seem better than before. "Don't worry, buddy. I'm not letting anyone else in this room," he said firmly. He shut the bathroom door and leaned against it.

If the doctor was really only calling Wendy, Zack could probably handle her. But the more he thought about it, the more convinced he was that Hyde would be calling his green-scrub cronies – the security guards disguised as orderlies. Those guys were another thing that made this place smell funny. He should have realized it long ago. Either way, he didn't really want to hurt anyone for no reason. It would be more effective to just keep them out.

The bathroom was very small, and the distance between the wall vanity and the door almost perfectly fit the length of Zack's legs. He sat down with his back against the door and braced his feet against the vanity, locking his knees in place. He'd had to hold himself up in worse positions than this. It would be simple to keep them from getting the door open.

Within minutes, he heard the clattering of several pairs of feet against the linoleum. Zack listened closely: it sounded like there were 4 people in addition to Dr. Hyde, whose footsteps were distinct by the way he dragged one foot, just a tiny bit. The other four were heavy people – maybe Wendy, the two green-scrub guys, and someone else.

The heavy footsteps all tromped toward the bathroom door. There was some murmured conversation before one of them decided to just try knocking. _Tap, tap, tap._

Zack adopted a falsetto voice. "Occupied!"

There was a bit of confused rustling among the feet outside the door, and then someone knocked again.

"Buuuusyyyyyyy!" he sang in a distinctly feminine voice.

"It's him, you idiots!" Dr. Hyde said loudly. "Just go in!"

The handle turned and Zack felt a slight pressure against his back. It turned again and slightly more pressure was applied. "It's stuck," a deep voice said.

"Oh for Ifrit's sake!" Hyde said in exasperation. "Move!" The handle turned again and Dr. Hyde's shoulder slammed against the door. It didn't budge, and his pained cursing could be heard moving away from the door.

"My, my, such language to use around a lady!" Zack said in the same high voice, adding a touch of scandal to his tone.

"Uh…Dr. Hyde? Are you sure…?" A male voice could be heard from the other side of the door.

"Of course I'm sure it's him!" Hyde raged. "Just bust the door down!"

Zack had to use a little more focus to keep his legs locked when the larger bodies started slamming against the door, but it didn't matter. They would wear out long before he would.

"Somebody call the police!" Zack cried dramatically. "Some rowdy boys are trying to assault me!" By then, he was just having too much fun tormenting them. Every time the "woman" said something, the brutes on the other side of the door paused and had to be kicked back into action.

He faintly heard the _blip-blip_ of the door to the room unlocking and more footsteps approaching. "What are you _imbeciles_ doing to that door?" It was the obnoxiously reedy voice of Professor Hojo. Zack wondered if he should feel honored that the prof himself had come down from his throne.

Dr. Hyde attempted to regain some control over the situation. "The specimens have locked themselves in the bathroom. They're refusing to continue the infusions."

Professor Hojo's response was smug. "Still think we should treat them as patients, Klaus? Stop this charade now. They have to come out eventually, and then we do it _my_ way." The footsteps retreated and the faint _blip-blip_ could be heard again.

There was an awkward silence. No one on the other side of the bathroom door seemed to know what to say. "Well, you heard him," Hyde snapped. "Get back to your regular duties."

Four sets of heavy footfalls pounded back across the room and exited through the door. Zack let out a sigh of relief and slouched against the door. Just when he thought they were alone, a pleading voice trickled through the wood. "Zack, don't do this. If you don't come out right now, it will be much worse for both of you."

"Worse?" Zack sputtered in his normal tone. "You were gonna kill him, Hyde!"

"He probably wouldn't have _died,_ Zack…"

"Probably?!"

"I mean, he definitely wouldn't have died. There may have been some slight brain damage, but…"

Zack was pissed. He stood up and yanked the door open. Dr. Hyde almost fell in on top of him, and Zack shoved him roughly backwards. "Are you fucking kidding, Hyde? Is that supposed to be acceptable?"

Dr. Hyde regained his balance and stood tall, locking his eyes on the SOLDIER. "You have no idea what you're messing with, Zack. You're being foolish."

Zack clenched his jaw and breathed evenly through his nose. He wasn't sure if his authority to refuse missions extended to this experimental treatment, but he was damn sure going to try. "I am a first class SOLDIER, and I am refusing this mission. I am also pulling Cadet Strife for health reasons. We are both to be discharged immediately."

The doctor laughed, shaking his head sadly. "Oh, Zack, such delusions. You think you're still a SOLDIER?" His eyes narrowed on Zack's glowing irises and his voice lowered. "The only reason you're still alive is because Hojo decided you were the closest living thing to Sephiroth. The only reason _he_ is still alive is to keep you sane! The more you resist, the less useful you become. Right now, you are nothing and he—" he pointed at Cloud in the tub "— _he_ is _less_ than nothing! Do you understand? If he is a distraction to you and the project, his life is worthless! He—"

Zack clenched his fist and popped Hyde in the nose. It was nowhere near as hard as it could have been, but the doctor stumbled backwards, his eyes squeezing shut and his hands held over his nose. "Hey, how was that, man?" Zack said loudly to Cloud. "No telegraphing that time, right?"

Dr. Hyde glared at Zack with fury in his eyes – fury and something else. Pity? Disappointment? Zack didn't know, but Hyde shook his head sadly. "You shouldn't have done that," he said softly. "I can't help you now."

With a flare of his lab coat, Dr. Hyde spun on his heel and stalked out of the room dramatically, his hand doing little to stem the flow of blood from his nose. Zack glanced up at the camera in the corner of the room. He was definitely not going to get away with it this time. He'd called for the doctor to _help_ Cloud; the last thing he'd expected was for Hyde to put him back on the IV.

He grimaced and closed the bathroom door, returning to crouch by Cloud's side. He reached over to feel his friend's face. It might have been slightly better, but it was hard to tell. He still felt like he was burning. Zack scooped up some water in his hands and tilted them so the cool liquid trickled down to Cloud's forehead and cheeks. He poured some more over his limp spikes, rinsing away the sweat. "I think I messed up, man. Damn, I wish you were awake! I know you would have a plan." Zack flexed his fists open and closed, just reaffirming his decision that it was time to take action. Hyde's comment clinched it. They were already toying with Cloud when they thought he was worth keeping alive. What would happen if they decided he was more trouble than he was worth? Zack set his jaw. "We have to get out of here. This place isn't what we thought."

He pulled the drain plug and stood up, looking around the room for something to use as a weapon. His eyes landed on the towel bar. It looked metallic but flimsy. He ripped it from the wall anyway; it would have to do until he found something better. He shoved the end of it into the side of his scrub pants and then leaned down to pick up his sopping wet roommate. He threw him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. It wasn't the nicest way to be carried, but Zack needed speed and mobility.

He hurried out to the main room and deposited Cloud on the bed. Setting his eyes on the camera in the corner, Zack pulled out the metal rod and wound up. With one hard swing, the camera broke off the wall mount, ripping away from the wires and smashing against the wall at the far side of the room.

Breaking the camera should attract some guards and eliminate any visual advantage they would've had. Zack would have to hope that his softball punch to Hyde would make them underestimate how much of a threat he was. If there were more than a few guards, it could get difficult. If he'd had a sword in his hand, he could take out entire platoons; taking on a small squad with a weak metal bar and a burden on his shoulder might be a challenge.

Zack analyzed every angle from the doorway, finding a place that would be out of the line of sight of the person who entered, but still allow enough space to swing his crappy weapon. There wasn't a good defensive position; he would need a distraction to draw their attention elsewhere. He scanned the room, looking for anything that could be rigged to create movement and noise. Unfortunately, since they had removed anything extra from the room, Zack's options were severely limited.

His eyes landed on Cloud. Cloud was the only thing to reliably draw their attention. He hated to use him as bait, but the guards wouldn't get near him. Zack picked up his friend's limp, burning body and put him on the floor, sprawled out awkwardly, face-down. It wasn't much, but it would hold their attention for a few seconds. That was all Zack needed.

 _Blip-blip._

They were faster than he expected, considering their response time when he actually _needed_ something. Zack dashed silently to his place next to the door, just out of sight of anyone until they cleared the threshold. The door opened carelessly, giving Zack a burst of confidence. They were amateurs. There was a gasp as the person caught sight of Cloud, and then their shadow rushed forward. Zack swung straight for the face, not holding anything back this time. The bar broke in half and his opponent went down in the doorway. Zack leapt forward, brandishing the remaining half of the bar toward the other guards.

Except there were no other guards. The hallway was entirely empty except for the unconscious body at his feet. Had they really just sent _one_?

Zack looked down at the body. It was right in the doorway, conveniently holding the door open. He felt a flash of guilt seeing Wendy sprawled out on the ground, two towels and two clean sets of scrubs scattered in front of her, blood pooling around her head. But just like any other mission, he was able to push the guilt away, tucked into a little pocket until he had time to deal with it. He had a job to do.

Zack rolled Wendy's body over and searched through her pockets. He barely glanced at the ID badge before jumping over her to get back into the room. He picked Cloud up from the floor and threw him over his shoulder again.

Just before leaving, his eyes landed on the discarded bar from the sides of Cloud's bed. They had been weak at the places they were welded to the railing, but the metal seemed solid enough. He snatched up the loose bar, holding it tightly in his right hand, Cloud draped over his left shoulder. He stepped over Wendy's body again, trying to get his bearings in the identical corridors. He knew which way went to the office area, so he turned in the opposite direction. They had to be closer to an exit this way.

He took off at a run. Cloud's stomach bounced on Zack's shoulder, sending grunts of air from his mouth. "Sorry, for the bumpy ride, man," he apologized to Cloud. "I couldn't afford first class tickets." He skidded in his socks at the first t-intersection, taking a sharp right turn. He had nothing more than a vague idea of the layout of the place, and he was just avoiding the places they'd been. It was a flimsy escape plan, but Zack was good at thinking on his feet. He could get them out of there. He had to, because his mission planner was passed out over his shoulder.

They reached the first set of barrier doors two hallways later. Zack pulled out Wendy's ID badge and waved it in front of the sensors he knew should be there. Nothing happened. No _blip-blip_ , no click, no release. He turned the knob and pushed against it anyway, but it was solidly locked. He looked at the corridor behind him. There was still no one pursuing them. He set Cloud down against the wall, then took a step back and kicked the doorway. The sound was deafening in the silent hallway, but the door only dented. He was well trained in breaking down doors, but of course Hojo would have known that. The doors were reinforced. Zack gritted his teeth and kicked again, and again, the dent growing slowly larger, but he wasn't getting through fast enough. Swearing under his breath, he picked up Cloud and threw him back over his shoulder. They had wasted far too much time trying to get through the door, and the noise had almost certainly given away their position.

He ran back in the direction from which they had come, turning at the next unexplored hallway. Skidding around the corner, Zack nearly fell over trying to stop. In front of the next set of barrier doors was a pair of green scrub thugs. They stood there with their arms folded, each with one blue hand, looking smug. They seemed awfully confident for men without weapons in their hands. Zack spun around, looking for another hallway. Before he could get anywhere, he was jerked back by the weight on his shoulder. One of the orderlies had grabbed Cloud's arm and pulled him back. Zack held on tighter, resulting in a brief tug-of-war with Cloud's body. He released him, hoping the sudden weight would knock them over, but they weren't close enough. Cloud hit the floor hard, the man holding onto his arm doing nothing to break his fall.

Zack spun around and brandished his sad weapon, taking stock of his opposition. Two men, well built and maybe slightly enhanced, but nowhere near SOLDIER levels. The orderly holding Cloud's arm dragged him closer and picked him up under the armpits. "Aww, you brought the pretty one for me! How thoughtful," he drawled.

Zack's protective instincts kicked up, but he held himself still. The guy was just trying to get under his skin. He couldn't let him. "How 'bout you set him down gently and I won't bash your head in?"

The two men seemed to think this was hilarious. They looked at each other and burst into laughter. Zack took the opportunity for a hard swing at the thug holding Cloud. He had warned him, and Zack wasn't going to give him a chance to use Cloud as leverage. The orderly saw it at the last second, dropping Cloud and ducking, but Zack was too fast. The hollow bar cracked against the man's skull, bending sharply at the point of impact. He went down like lead, and before the other orderly had even stopped laughing, Zack spun around and swung upward. The mangled bar caught the bearded man underneath the jaw. He let out a howl and fell back against the door. Zack ducked down and looped an arm around Cloud, dragging him awkwardly away, glancing over his shoulder once he had reached a safe distance.

The bearded man was on his radio. Zack turned back, running and jumping to kick the guard on the side of the head. Between his foot and the hard metal door, the guard's skull made a loud clanging sound before he slumped down to the floor. He would probably survive. Assuming they were truly Shinra employees, Zack planned to keep the body count as low as possible. SOLDIERs were precision instruments, trained to cut through at the enemy's weakest points and head straight for the heart. Although they were terrifyingly capable of mass destruction if ordered, Shinra had an image to protect. Their most public warriors were protectors of the innocent, not mindless murderers.

The radio blared out from the guard's limp hand. "Hello? Come again, K2488? Did you find them?"

Zack plucked the radio from his hand and depressed the button. "Yeah, we got 'em," he said, trying to imitate the guard's voice. "I'll bring them back to their room." He released the button and started searching the guards for better weapons.

A squeaky male voice came over the radio again. "No, man, weren't you listening? Hojo wants them put in solitary when they're captured."

"I know that, jackass! That's the room I'm talking about!" Zack patted his hands down the legs and bodies of both guards, finding nothing except the stupid billy clubs hooked to their belts. They were practically toys. Were they honestly expecting to stop Zack Fair with a damn baton?

It was better than the mangled bed rail though, so he took both batons and then smashed the radio to the ground. He scooped up Cloud and took off in the opposite direction. Zack raced around several more corners, down identical looking corridors. As long as they kept moving to the southwest, they would eventually have to reach an exit, or at least an exterior window.

But the place was a maze. He tried Wendy's badge at several doors – both barriers and regular room doors – but it unlocked nothing. It was useless. They must have found her and deactivated it already. Shifting Cloud's weight on his shoulder, he plunged on, ducking around the next corner and skidding to a stop five feet before a row of soldiers blocking the hallway.

They weren't even bothering to pretend they were orderlies anymore. These were fully uniformed guards with semi-automatic weapons aimed at the boys. A sound from behind them told Zack that they were closing in from behind as well.

His mind raced through his options. The wimpy wooden batons wouldn't be able to block bullets, but he knew from experience that he could take quite a few hits before he would even slow down. There were only 6 of them in front of him; it didn't matter how many were behind because he just had to break this line. He tightened his grip on the baton. Even with Cloud's weight on the one side, he could easily bust through these greenhorns. He bent his knees, ready to spring.

"Don't be foolish, Zackary. I know what you're thinking." Dr. Hyde's voice came suddenly over the speaker. "I know you think you can take a lot of bullets…but _he_ can't."

Zack froze. How could he have forgotten that? Cloud didn't have SOLDIER enhancements. A single, well-placed bullet could snap the delicate thread of his life and Zack wouldn't be able to do a damn thing about it. He spun around, looking at the row of soldiers closing in from behind. There was no way he could dodge that many without risking one of them hitting Cloud.

"I—I want to negotiate, Hyde," Zack said loudly. "We'll come back peacefully, but I need to know that we won't be harmed."

The silence from the intercom speaker stretched on. Finally, the doctor responded softly, "You've made promises before, Zack. I seem to recall a promise in exchange for having your friend share a room."

Zack winced. He'd forgotten about his promise to be a cooperative patient and go along with whatever they asked of him. "The circumstances changed, Hyde. Can we talk in person, please? I don't negotiate with electronics."

Dr. Hyde chuckled. He knew he had the upper hand again. "Let these boys bring you back to your room in cuffs and…we'll talk."

* * *

"Tifa?" Cloud rubbed his eyes, blinking at the figure approaching through the grey mist.

His childhood neighbor smiled shyly. "Hi, Cloud."

She looked different. Her hair was cut short and a shade too light, but it was undoubtedly the girl he'd seen in so many fantasies. She was even wearing the silly cowgirl getup she had worn to the reactor. It had seemed childish, but unbelievably sexy on the girl who wasn't really a girl anymore. If Cloud hadn't already been too embarrassed to show his face, he definitely would have made a fool of himself when she was wearing _that_.

"What are you…how are you here?" he stuttered.

"I don't know, exactly," Tifa said thoughtfully. "Someone – she said she was your guardian angel? – she said she could bring me to you."

Cloud looked up above his head. _Mother?_

He felt a glowing warmth that he recognized as her version of a hug. He smiled. Mother had brought Tifa to him. A troubling thought occurred to him and he focused on Tifa again. "Were you in the lifestream?"

Tifa nodded. "I think I still am. I'm just…visiting."

 _How long do we have, Mother?_

He had learned that he didn't really need to use his voice to communicate with her in this place. She could hear his thoughts as plain as day.

' _Long enough. Enjoy your time with her, Love.'_

"Cloud? Did you hear me?"

"Huh?" He was startled to realize that they had moved. They were sitting on the invisible floor, facing each other, their knees almost touching. "I'm sorry, I was thinking. What did you say?"

Tifa giggled, that girlish sound that always made his stomach flutter. "I asked you to tell me about your life over the past few years. What was it like in Midgear?"

"Midgar?" Cloud corrected absently. "It was amazing, Tifa. You would have loved it. It was so huge! There were cars everywhere, but even if you didn't own a car, there were these guys with cars that you could pay to take you anywhere in the city."

Tifa wrinkled her nose. "That doesn't sound very safe. You just got in a car with a stranger and trusted him to take you where you wanted to go?"

Cloud laughed. He remembered how he had felt in his first days in the technological city. Teef was still a small-town girl. "I know, everything seems crazy at first. A lot of the buildings are too tall for stairs, so they have these moving cars that just go up and down to bring you to different floors. They have machines that do almost everything for you, as long as you've got money for it. And the whole thing sits on this giant plate in the air!"

Tifa oohed and aahed and clapped at all the right places. It was exactly the way he'd imagined it would be when he came back famous. He would have all these stories about the brave things he had done and the places he had seen. She would be so impressed that she would fall head over heels for him. And ok, he didn't have a bunch of stories about his brave exploits, but Tifa didn't seem to care. She seemed just as excited to hear about the missions where he'd played backup to Zack, or even an interesting night on guard duty.

He felt invincible. Nothing he said was wrong. Even when he blurted out something stupid, Tifa just agreed or else laughed like he was the funniest person she'd ever met. Is this the way it would have been? If he had just been brave enough to take off his stupid helmet and let her know he was there, could they have had this for real? If they had been together, could he have stopped her from running off to the reactor on her own?

"What is it, Love?" Tifa asked. "Why did you get so sad all of the sudden?" Her hand was on his knee, and she moved closer. Distractingly close.

Cloud swallowed and leaned back. "I was just realizing that this can never be real. You're gone." His voice cracked on the last word.

Tifa tilted her head to the side. "So?" She closed the distance between them, brushing her lips softly against his. "At least we have this."

Cloud had been accused of being oblivious to girls that were into him at the Academy, but he was pretty sure that was a 'kiss me now' signal.

He hesitated for only a moment before tentatively kissing her. She responded enthusiastically, her warm mouth opening to his, pulling herself closer. It felt different than he expected somehow. Maybe because he'd imagined it so many times. Maybe because his expectations were unrealistic, expecting some kind of mind-blowing fireworks. But it was just…a kiss.

She felt wrong. She tasted wrong. Cloud pushed those thoughts out of his head. He really had no idea how she tasted or felt; his imagination couldn't possibly know that. It was just different.

 _Time's up, Love._

Disappointment flowed through him. He ended the kiss, pulling back gently, resting his forehead against hers. His fingers played with the soft strands at the back of her head. "I have to leave now. Will you come see me again?"

"I'll try," she said with a shy smile. "If Mother brings me."

Her face dissolved, but there was no watery green to replace it this time. It was the stark white of the ceiling. He had seen Mother and he wasn't even in the tank. This realization was followed by the return of the pain. Cloud gasped at the first shock, then gritted his teeth against it.

"Cloud? You awake?" Zack's voice came from the other bed.

"Yes," Cloud gritted out. "Please, Zack, take it out. I don't know what he told you, but it's not true. It hurts! Please…please believe me…"

"I believe you," Zack said softly.

"Then help me!" Cloud said, struggling to hold back the tears that threatened again.

"I…I can't."

"What?" Cloud attempted to sit up, but the harsh pull of the handcuffs stopped him. He turned his head to look at his roommate instead. "Zack! I don't understand…what's going on?" Zack now had his own IV stand, complete with the murky green fluid flowing into his elbow. He also had his own set of shackles, although his were embedded in the wall behind him. The plaster had been cut away to reveal solid cement.

Zack was shaking and sweating, although he didn't appear to be in as much pain as his friend. The mako in his blood must have dulled it. "I um…" His hand moved toward the back of his neck, a move as familiar to his friend as his spiky black hair, but was stopped abruptly by his chains. He took a shaky breath. "I tried to escape, Cloud. It didn't work, but I learned something important."

Cloud tried hard to focus on Zack's words, but the pain made it hard to think about anything else.

"We're not patients here, Cloud. We're prisoners."


	7. The Rules Have Changed

**"I told you so," Professor Hojo gloats as Hyde enters the office. It's the evening after Zack's disastrous escape attempt. Hojo is seated in his usual throne, looking smugly over his crystal glass at his colleague. "You treat the specimens too well and they think they have rights."**

 **Dr. Hyde removes his lab coat as the office door closes silently behind him. Far from being humbled by Hojo's announcement, Hyde looks like he has just won the lottery. "You're missing the point, Horace!" he says excitedly, hanging the bleached white coat on the hook. "S-15 went crazy when his little pet got sick."**

 **Hojo simply raises his eyebrows behind his wiry glasses. "I noticed. And?"**

 **" _And_ that has all kinds of psychological implications! Their little tryst around the facility gave us a goldmine of information."**

 **"Little tryst?" Hojo snorts. "It wasn't a field trip, Klaus. Wendy might not even come back to work again. We've lost two enhanced guards completely. It isn't easy to find men with the capacity for mako enhancements who understand the greatness of my work, you know."**

 **"You mean who have no moral objections," Hyde says flatly. The professor just shrugs and takes a drink.**

 **"So what is this goldmine of information, Hyde? That Zack is capable of destroying my facility? That he can take out a couple of lazy, distracted guards?"**

 **"I said _psychological,"_ Dr. Hyde enunciates, standing behind his chair and grasping the headrest. "Don't you see? S-15 could have easily escaped on his own. He could have plowed through those bullets and fought his way out. But he didn't, because he wouldn't sacrifice S-16."**

 **Hojo snorts dismissively. He doesn't consider such traits to be a positive in his SOLDIERs.**

 **"And on top of that, S-16 made it through the first fortified solution and he's _lucid_!"**

 **Dr. Hojo sits up immediately. "How did the cells bond?" The few other specimens who had made it through the first infusion with their minds intact were poor candidates for the experiment.**

 **"Exceptionally well!" Dr. Hyde says, his eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store. "Better than any we've done thus far."**

 **Professor Hojo snatches up the papers he hadn't bothered to look over when Hyde came in. His eyes grow wider as they scan over rows and rows of genomes, unwilling to trust Dr. Hyde's interpretation. "This is…how is this possible?"**

 **"Perhaps…it has something to do with the cold shower," Hyde says hesitantly. "S-15 was concerned about the fever and put him in cold water." When Hojo doesn't explode over that tidbit, the doctor continues more confidently. "We haven't interfered with the excessive body temperatures previously because the Jenova cells seem to grow better, at the expense of the host's coherent mind." The professor's brow lowers, but the doctor rushes on. "By lowering his temperature, S-16's brain cells were spared and the cells _still_ bonded! They've already begun mutating!"**

 **Dr. Hyde finally sits down, clasping his hands together and leaning forward conspiratorially. "Horace…just think what we could do with clones who weren't mindless. They could live on as ordinary citizens, absorbing data for the host until the reunion!"**

 **Professor Hojo's eyes flicker back and forth rapidly, making connections in his brilliant, twisted mind. "Alright. I _doubt_ his temperature is the reason for his success, but let's try to control it during future infusions, just in case." Hyde looks slightly perturbed at the dismissal of his theory, but I'm not surprised. If Hojo were to agree, he would have to admit that he had made a mistake, and no mistake that occurred in this lab has _ever_ been his fault. A smug smile spreads across the professor's face. "I _knew_ there was something special about that boy!"**

 **Dr. Hyde looks irritated, but he gets up and walks to the bar, hiding his expression from his colleague. For a moment, the only sound is the clinking of crystal and the pouring of liquid. "There's still the open question about his psychological profile."**

 **"What about it?" Hojo asks distractedly.**

 **Hyde returns to his chair with his drink, then opens the leather briefcase by his side. He pulls out a thin manila folder and hands it over to Hojo. I can't read the tab at the top of the folder, but when he opens it, I can see that it's a profile sheet. There are two pictures – head shots, front and side. He's younger and looks considerably healthier, but it's clearly the blond boy.**

 **"I decided to look into his history," the doctor says. "There's nothing about his childhood anywhere; he grew up in one of those backwater towns with no technology," he says distastefully. "But I looked up his Shinra profile and found an interesting tidbit. S-16 actually applied to the SOLDIER program last year."**

 **Hojo's mouth drops open as he reaches the relevant part of the document. "He failed the psychological portion." He looks up and locks eyes with the doctor. "They didn't think he could withstand the mako showers."**

 **Dr. Hyde looks disappointed at having his thunder stolen. "Er…yes. But we've obviously seen that he can handle the mako tubes. So whatever it is that drove him to overpower Sephiroth–"**

 **"And break the leather bindings," Hojo inserted.**

 **"…must also be the ability that allows him to survive the mako," Hyde concluded triumphantly. "And I think I might know what it is."**

 **"Oh?" The professor raises his brow.**

 **Dr. Hyde knocks back the rest of his drink and sets down his glass loudly. "How would you feel about a little wager?"**

 **"A wager?" Hojo says skeptically.**

 **"Yes." Dr. Hyde leans forward and taps his fingertips together. "You try to push him past his limits. You get three tries to try to make him break through the bindings. If all three fail, then I get to try."**

 **Dr. Hojo swirls his drink around in his glass, warming up to the idea. Hojo hates to lose at anything, and the idea of Hyde figuring out the answer before him clearly chafes. "All in the name of science, I assume?"**

 **"Of course," Hyde says lightly.**

 **The edges of Hojo's lips curl up in what can only be described as an evil grin.**

* * *

Chapter 6: The Rules Have Changed

Cloud felt empty. It had nothing to do with the recently completed infusion, and everything to do with his best friend's words, which the pain had finally eased enough for him to think about. _'We're not patients…we're prisoners.'_ To be honest, this didn't come as much of a shock to Cloud. He had been suspect of the doctor's motives from the beginning. No, it was the other part that disturbed him.

 _'I tried to escape.'_

He couldn't believe Zack would actually leave him behind in this place. Maybe he planned to go for help. Maybe he thought it was the best way to save them both. Or maybe he hadn't thought about Cloud at all. Cloud had a pretty good idea of what would happen to him if Zack managed to get out while he was unconscious. Didn't Zack think about that? Didn't he care?

No, that wasn't fair. Of _course_ Zack cared about him. If anything, he hadn't thought through the consequences. He had only been thinking about getting away, getting help. In some ways, Zack was really brilliant. In his hands, anything could be a weapon or a key. He could rig up an escape with a ribbon and a bottle of booze. The problem was that he wouldn't think _beyond_ the room. He was very much an in-the-moment type of guy.

But then _why_ had he suddenly decided to escape? The entire experience had been a nightmare for Cloud – the beatings, the starvation, the sickness, the all-encompassing pain of the infusion, the betrayal from his best friend. But Zack's suffering seemed to be the equivalent of training camp. The workouts were hard and the tests were annoying, but he hadn't really been subjected to anything yet, had he? Still, for some reason he had tried to escape, and now here he was, chained to the wall. He had lost the illusion of choice over his circumstances, and he was taking it hard.

It was strange to see Zack in that state. Goofy, determined, look-on-the-bright-side Zack, was brooding. Cloud wanted to talk to him, but every time he tried to think of something to say, he remembered the desperate lunging for his IV line, the source of his agony, and the way Zack held it just out of his reach. The memory was bright but distorted. Was Zack laughing at him? Yes, he must be. He was taunting him. He had laughed while Cloud had screamed, and then he had tried to leave him behind.

But it didn't make sense. This wasn't some stranger – it was Zack! Zack was loyal and fierce and caring and compassionate. And then, even as he tried to convince himself, another memory butted in. It was the octo-room, with the blinding rage and the stranger with green-ringed irises.

Cloud looked up at his roommate again. Which version of Zack Fair was in there now?

 _Blip-blip._

Both boys looked over at the door expectantly. Dr. Hyde entered, looking down at them through his tiny glasses, clasping his hands behind his back. For a moment, no one spoke. The three men sized each other up, measuring the new balance of power.

Finally, Dr. Hyde shook his head and tut-tutted at his patients. "I didn't want it to come to this. But I did warn you."

Cloud looked back and forth between Zack and the doctor, who were locked in some kind of silent eye battle. "What are you talking about?" he asked quietly. "Warned us about what?"

"Zack didn't tell you?" A crooked smile came over Hyde's face and he turned his head to look at his other patient. "He knew exactly what would happen to you if he kept acting so rashly, yet he persisted in fighting me."

"Fuck you, Hyde," Zack said savagely. "You left me no choice."

The doctor bounced on his toes, looking back to Zack. "There's always a choice, S-15. And you chose to have yourself and your friend treated like prisoners instead of guests."

"What did you call me?" Zack looked caught between surprise and lingering anger.

"Anyway, it's time to start the new wave of tests. Since Wendy is—" Hyde leveled Zack with an accusatory look – "injured, Gage will be here to escort you shortly. You're first, 16." Without another word, he turned and swept from the room.

"What the hell is with the numbers?" Zack demanded, but the doctor was gone. He punched the mattress angrily. "Why does he keep doing that?"

Cloud laid back on his bed and stared at the ceiling. He knew what it meant. "He's dehumanizing us," he said softly. "It means he doesn't see us as people anymore. Or at least he's trying not to."

"What—what?" Zack sputtered. "How can you just suddenly pretend people aren't people?"

Cloud shrugged. "It's not like you can just turn it off. But little things like that, psychologically, make it easier to do horrible things to other people."

Zack took a minute to absorb that. Maybe he was just beginning to understand that these people had horrible things in store for them.

 _Blip-blip._

A large, bearded man entered the room. His hair was fire-red, melding seamlessly from his scalp to his chin. He looked like a pair of eyes in the middle of a fireball. His arms were like slabs of beef. He wore one of the strange blue gloves on his left hand, which held a clipboard from which he was currently reading. "S-16? You're coming with me." He pulled a small ring of keys from his belt, selecting a tiny silver one. Or maybe they all just looked tiny in his massive sausage fingers.

Leaning over Cloud, the unfamiliar orderly grabbed his forearm and lifted it roughly. He fitted the little key into the hole in the handcuffs and released Cloud's wrist, then repeated it with the other arm.

Cloud rubbed his sore wrists as soon as he was free. They were still bruised from his struggles during the infusion, but they were much farther along in healing than he'd expected them to be. He must have been put in the mako tank at some point while he was unconscious.

Then Gage grabbed him under the arm and hauled him to his feet. Cloud stumbled, but Gage held him upright with his bruising grip. "Hey, you don't have to be so rough," Zack said sharply.

"I'm fine, Zack," Cloud said wearily, standing up straight. How ironic that Zack was acting worried about him _now._ After forcing him through the infusion and then trying to leave without him, he was going to snap at the orderly for not being gentle enough?

Gage ignored him completely, pulling Cloud forward. He grabbed the door handle and pulled, but it didn't budge. With an irritated sigh, he took a few steps to the side before the telltale _blip-blip_ sounded, and then dragged his patient out the door.

Cloud didn't say anything as he was pulled quickly down the hall. He had actually gotten pretty comfortable with Wendy, even if she was a little rough around the edges. She had a weird sense of humor, making him laugh at the most unexpected times. He needed those unexpected laughs in this place. Why would Zack have hurt her? It must have happened during his escape attempt – when he had left Cloud behind. The thought made Cloud angry all over again.

Suddenly, a sharp jerk on his free wrist pulled him from the loose grasp of Gage. He stumbled through a doorway and tripped, hitting the floor hard on his hands and knees. The door closed behind him, and Cloud scrambled back to his feet and spun around. Gage was inside of the room with him, leaning against the door. Then he felt another arm across his chest, pulling him back against the far wall. Another man, a smaller brunet with a crew cut, held his shoulders against the plaster.

Cloud struggled against him, pushing off of the wall. He kicked out, grazing the man's shin. The man grimaced, but didn't let up. Cloud must have still been weak from starvation and the days he was stuck in bed.

"Settle down, cutie pie," he said, grinning at Cloud. His teeth were uneven, and he had the scarring of nasty teenage acne, but what caught Cloud's attention most was the subtle glow of mako in his eyes. The man didn't release his shoulders, but he stood back a bit to admire his captive. "So delicate," he said appreciatively. "So pretty."

"I've only got three minutes to get him through the next door, Eugene," Gage warned.

"Get the fuck away from me," Cloud growled through gritted teeth, pushing against him again.

Eugene pressed closer, putting his knee between Cloud's legs, pushing him against the wall. "Oh don't worry, sweetheart," he said, breathing hot air in his ear. "We'll do this later. Now that Wendy's not here to get in the way, we have all the time in the world." A hot, wet tongue licked up the side of his face, and Cloud squirmed harder. "I just wanted to build up the anticipation a little bit." Then Eugene pulled back suddenly, shoving Cloud, stumbling, back to Gage. Opening the door behind him, Gage led Cloud back out into the hallway. "See you soon!" Eugene called after them.

Cloud clenched his jaw, but said nothing, letting Gage pull him forward again. He hated – _hated_ – feeling so weak. It was the reason he had gone off to join Shinra in the first place. And really, he'd come a long way in two years. He was a good soldier. He was a fast learner. He put in the work instead of goofing off like some of the others. On top of that, he had Zack's private training sessions, and he'd gotten pretty good with the sword. If he'd gotten the SOLDIER enhancements, he would have been _damn_ good. But after weeks without food, after whatever garbage they'd been pumping into his blood, he was back to that stupid, helpless kid who couldn't keep a girl from falling off a bridge.

He tried not to cry. He was so damn emotional lately, but he couldn't allow himself to crumble. Not when he was surrounded by people out to get him. Not when he didn't even know if he could count on Zack.

Zack Fair. The best friend he'd ever had. Cloud had been so captivated by him when they first met. A second class SOLDIER, paying attention to _him_? It wasn't just his rank and skill that impressed Cloud. Zack was funny. He was kind. He cared about other people, especially the cadets under him. He was endlessly encouraging and positive. Honestly, _everybody_ liked Zack, especially the girls. And for some reason, he'd taken a liking to Cloud.

Eventually, Cloud had stopped questioning it. He also finally realized that Zack wasn't perfect. He was so overzealous about everything, to the point that it was almost ridiculous. Every new girl he hooked up with was an angel. She was _the one._ He was going to marry her someday. He fell hard and fast, and he burned out just as quickly. She was annoying. She wanted to watch stupid TV shows, and her perfume was cloying. She wore too much makeup. She was too clingy, or too independent. Things that he found endearing in the beginning started to bother him, and then began the inevitable spiral to the dramatic breakup.

Cloud was used to it by now, the endless drama of Zack's love life. He was there to keep him grounded at the beginning of each new relationship, and there to pick him up at the end. Honestly, he'd been surprised at how long he'd stuck with his most recent girlfriend, Aerith. Maybe it was because, from the very beginning, she kept his ego in check. She didn't drool over him like most girls. Cloud had stopped bothering to meet Zack's girlfriends long before that. There was no point in making friends with a girl whose name Zack couldn't stand to hear a month later. But he kind of wished he'd been able to meet Aerith. There was something different about her.

Cloud was so wrapped up in his memories that he didn't realize where he was being taken until the looming walls of the octo-room stood over him. A sense of dread spread through his limbs, and he pulled back against his escort. "Now, now," Gage said in a patronizing tone, tightening his grip on Cloud's arm, "don't make me drag you in by your hair."

Cloud planted his feet, pulling back harder. Gage's eyes crinkled at the corners suddenly, and the mop of fiery hair on his face tilted upward. He reached over with his free hand to press something on his wrist. There was a muted _click_ and a sharp poke from the blue glove, and Cloud turned into a puddle. Every muscle in his body suddenly went slack, and he collapsed to the ground. Gage let him fall and looked at his blue-gloved hand. There was nothing to see, though. The needle had flicked out and immediately retracted.

"Well that was kind of a letdown," the fireball said to the puddle. Cloud wanted to retort, but he couldn't. The same chemical that immobilized them in the tank was flowing through his blood, except now there was no fluid to bring in the oxygen his body needed. There were no strange bubbles holding him upright.

It was a terrifying feeling, even worse than the tank, because he felt so much more vulnerable with his face pressed against the cold, dirty floor. He couldn't blink. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. But he could feel.

He felt every inch of the ground sliding under his limp body, and the slight bump of the doorframe. He felt the straining of every strand of hair wrapped in the big man's fist. He couldn't turn his head to see, but he did hear the obnoxious, reedy voice of Professor Hojo.

"Ah, I see you tried out the Wippy glove."

"Yeah," Gage said as he continued dragging Cloud across the sleek metallic floor. "What a disappointment. He just fell down."

"Yes, well, hurry up and secure him before it wears off. You only have 30 to 60 seconds," Hojo snapped.

Cloud felt himself being lifted under his armpits. His head flopped forward against his chest, but he was too concerned with what was happening with his body to notice what they were doing with him. His eyes were dry. He was starting to get dizzy, and darkness closed around the edges of his vision. When he felt the first, labored movement of his lungs, every ounce of his focus went toward dragging in that painful breath. His eyes finally closed, and he wheezed loudly, each breath forced in and out while his brain struggled to overcome the effects of the drug.

When he was finally able to open his eyes and lift his head, Hojo's ugly face was the first thing he saw. He turned his head away, and his eyes landed on his bound wrist. There was some kind of leather strap holding him against rough wood. The wood was one corner of a giant X; the other three corners held his ankles and his other wrist.

 _Oh…shit._

Cloud pulled his arms forward, straining against the straps. They didn't budge. "What…what is this? Let me down from here right now, you freak!"

Hojo gave a rare, amused smile, displaying his coffee-stained teeth. "A freak, you say? That's funny, coming from _you_."

Cloud scowled and pulled harder, struggling with both his arms and legs, ignoring the slivers of wood stabbing into his skin. _Calm down, calm down, calm down._ He repeated the mantra in his head, trying to fight off the panic that that threatened to overwhelm him.

Gage was gone, but the excitable little freckled girl from his first octo-room sessions was there. She gave him a shy smile, and Cloud stared back incredulously. She was _smiling_ at him! Like they were meeting at some kind of school dance!

He rocked his body backwards and forwards, trying to tip the X one way or the other, but it was too stable. The girl reached out to his shoulder – to calm him maybe, or even to help.

"Lissa! I told you not to touch him!" Hojo snapped.

The girl quickly pulled her hand back, looking chastened. "Sorry, professor," she said obediently. She clasped her hands behind her back, like she needed to physically keep them in check. She stood there watching him struggle, her face frozen in awe, like he was some kind of butterfly fighting his way out of a chrysalis.

He knew he should stop struggling. It was pointless to fight against such strong bindings, but he _hated_ being tied down.

 _"Tifa's in a coma, sweetheart. They're not sure, but…well, we'll just have to pray for a miracle."_

 _Cloud felt numb. He was nine years old – old enough to know what his mother wasn't saying. They thought she would die. He couldn't hold her, she slipped through his weak, weak fingers, and she was going to die. He stared up at his mother's pretty face, marred by worry wrinkles. "Cloud? Honey, are you ok?"_

 _"I…I'm fine, mom. I'm going to finish my chores now."_

 _Cloud turned and walked out the back door, ignoring his mother calling after him. He picked up the big metal bucket and walked to the town well in a daze. He set the bucket under the faucet and opened it up, watching the water splash noisily into his pail._

 _Die…. The word echoed in his head. Die. Tifa might die. He couldn't save her, and she was going to die. She would get to see the mother she'd tried to chase over the mountains. Cloud pictured her, the girl next door, cold and unmoving in her best dress, tucked into a little pine box. Her hands would be folded over her stomach, those beautiful, long, piano fingers forever stilled._

 _He had no idea that he wasn't alone before an arm wrapped around his neck and dragged him backwards, throwing him down to the ground._

 _"Hey!" Cloud yelled, trying to sit up. One of the boys, one of Tifa's stupid little clique, kicked him in the side. Another boy, a much bigger one, sat on his chest and pinned his arms against the ground. Cloud kicked and squirmed underneath him. The boy was crushing his rib cage and it was hard to breathe. Two more sets of unseen hands clamped down on his ankles, pressing them into the dirt. Random sneakers started kicking his exposed sides, his head, anyplace they could reach around the three kids holding him down. A hard foot stomped down on his face, and pain shot through his head. The hot gush of blood from his nose dripped into his open mouth._

 _Cloud yelled and coughed, struggling vainly against the gang of boys. "Everyone knows what you did, you little freak!" one of the kids yelled down at him. "Georgie saw you push Tifa off that bridge."_

 _Cloud's eyes opened wide. "What? No! She—she fell! I tried—"_

 _A clump of grass, roots clogged with dirt, was shoved roughly into his mouth. "Shut your lying mouth!" Georgie screamed. A fist too small to be part of something so violent smashed against his mouth, knocking a tooth loose while Cloud gagged on dirt and blood._

 _Dirty, angry faces floated over him, vying for position for an open shot at his body. The forgotten bucket filled up and began running over the side. The cold water snaked across the dirt and pooled under his head. Cloud jerked his head back, the only part of his body he could still move, and that's when he saw them. Two men, standing in the shadows, watching. 'Help!' His eyes begged for what his mouth couldn't. But they just stood there, arms crossed and lips pressed tight. He recognized one of them – Charlie's father, another of Tifa's friends, one of the many feet striking him._

 _The beating seemed to go on forever, but eventually, the weight lifted from his chest. Cloud rolled to his side and spit out the wad of grass and dirt, curling himself into a ball. Every part of his body ached. His throat was raw from trying to breathe, from trying to scream. He coughed and coughed, until finally he vomited. The half-digested meal fell from the side of his mouth and swirled in the gathering puddle, mixing with his blood._

 _He had no idea how long he laid there, crying, before brown working man's shoes came into his vision. Cloud curled his face under his arm, sobbing and ashamed. The shoes sloshed through the mud, splattering cold water over him. A moment later, the faucet was closed, and the sound of running water ceased. There was a pause (_ are you going to help me? _), and then the footsteps faded._

 _The water tower was in the center of town. The spigot was in a shadowed area, but still, people had to have seen what was happening. People like the two men who stood in the shadow, or the one who came to turn off the water. Adults. But no one came to help him. He and his mother were unpopular, only tolerated by the rest of the town. He was old enough to understand that, but still he had thought that someone would come save him. Someone had to think that what was happening was wrong._

 _The sun sank and the shadows lengthened. Cloud shivered, watching the nasty mixture settle onto the earth as the water soaked into the ground._

 _Finally, a hand pulled at his shoulder. "Come on, boy. You're going to catch your death lying there all wet."_

 _Death…die…he might die…she might die…_

 _"Get up now," the same no-nonsense voice said, louder._

 _Cloud blinked and turned his head. It was Agnes, the old lady who lived two houses down from the Strife's humble hut. She put an arm behind his back and around his elbow, lifting him gently to his feet. Then she picked up his overfull bucket. The handle was broken, so she settled the pail in the crook of one arm, supporting Cloud with the other. She ignored the water sloshing over the sides and wetting her working dress. She was the epitome of a mountain woman, strong and sturdy despite her years, with the stubbornness and who-gives-a-damn-what-other-people-think attitude of the old and wise. Cloud limped along beside her, barely aware of her presence._

 _"Cloud!" His mother was nearly frantic as she pulled him into the house. She fretted over his wounds, cleaning them and splashing the stinging alcohol over them, sewing up the gash in his forehead, ceaselessly questioning: "What happened? Who did this to you?"_

 _He didn't answer. He was cataloguing them in his brain, memorizing their faces. He didn't want to tell her, because he was going to get them back. He was going to get strong. He was going to learn to fight. And one day, he would show them all._

Cloud pushed away the memory and forced himself to stop struggling. There was no gang of kids beating him. Tifa wasn't going to die because she was _dead_ , because despite everything he did to make himself stronger, it wasn't enough. In the end, he still couldn't save her.

"Done fighting already?" Hojo asked, sounding disappointed. "I see. Well, onto the next phase, then. Lissa?"

The pretty young woman smiled brightly, pulling forward a rolling cart. It was the same shiny, metallic material as the rest of the octo-room, and as Cloud watched, she unrolled a cloth-wrapped set of materia, spreading them across the top of the cart. The green glow reflected from the walls and the ceiling, tinting the entire room with the otherworldly color. Cloud couldn't tell what they were without touching them, but he was pretty sure that none of them would be pleasant.

Lissa fingered them lovingly, caressing each green orb. "Three chances, Lissa," Hojo warned. "Choose correctly."

Lissa nodded seriously, like she was about to start an important exam. "Let's see…everyone has a weakness. Everyone has a fear. What's yours?" She looked up at him and studied his pale face. "Lightning? Do you imagine what it feels like to be electrocuted?" Apparently not getting the reaction she wanted, the girl looked back down at the orbs. "How about poison? Do you know how it feels to have your insides turned out?"

Cloud tensed. He had actually been poisoned once. It was fairly mild, but it had taken a long time to realize what was wrong, and he had gotten pretty sick by then. Lissa smiled like they shared a secret, and then it hit him. Hard.

Everything ached at once. His gut clenched, but there was nothing in his bowels to empty. There was nothing in his stomach, either, but that didn't stop it from trying. A splitting headache tore through his head. He let it fall forward while he dry heaved. He strained against the leather straps with the force of his body retching. The pressure against his eyeballs made him certain they were about to explode. And then it stopped as suddenly as it had begun.

"Holy shit," he whispered, trying to catch his breath. Lissa was one powerful magic user. He lifted his head, his eyes still watering. She looked unhappy, and he felt strangely bad for disappointing her.

"What about fire? Do you know how it feels to be burned alive?" she asked in her sweet, innocent voice.

Instantly, he was sucked into the echoes of screams.

 _Flames danced merrily across the thatched rooftops as he dodged the burning debris falling from the sky. He put his hand against the front door of his house. It was hot, even through the material of his gloves. He took a step back and kicked the door. It slammed down against the floor of the house, and a burst of heat pushed him back as the flames reached greedily for the fresh air._

 _He put an arm across his mouth and pushed through it. "Mom? Mom! Where are you?"_

 _"Cl—" *cough, cough* "Honey, get out! It's not—" *cough, cough, cough*_

 _Cloud looked around frantically in the tiny hut. Flames covered every surface. The two beds were already lost in a lake of fire, and for a moment, his heart stopped. But there she was, in the corner of the kitchen, pinned down by a fallen beam. "Mom! Just hang on, I'll get you out of there."_

 _"Baby don—"_

 _The back wall of the hut collapsed. The orange light flared up between them and he stumbled back, losing sight of her. That was when her screams started._

 _"MOM!" The heat pressed in from every side. There was no way around the wall. He was going to have to jump through. If he could avoid the base of the flames, maybe he wouldn't catch. He took a few steps back to get a running start, and when the first of the fire licked at his boots, he jumped._

 _He landed heavily on the floor, and his boot broke though, slipping down into the root cellar. The rest of the floor held, though, trapping him in place. He pulled frantically at his leg and tried to smother the flames licking up his sleeves. "Mom, I—"_

 _He looked up, and the image imprinted itself into his brain, mixing in with all the memories of her beautiful face, her sweet smile, her girlish giggle. They were forever tainted with blackened skin and agonized screaming while the flames consumed her._

 _Over the crackling of the fire and the mingling screams, hers and his, he heard a loud crack above his head. He looked up just in time to see the sky cave in, and then everything was black._

Cloud bucked wildly against the restraints of his wooden X, but they were as stubborn as ever. The flames, blue in their intensity, had started at his feet and climbed all the way to his chest. He screamed, stretching his neck, trying to keep his head away from the licking flames. The plasticky material of his scrubs melted onto his skin.

The next second, he was hit with a cold burst of water, and that was even worse. His burned flesh tightened instantly, huge fissures cracking open over his body, oozing translucent yellowish goo. The remains of his scrubs fell to the ground with chunks of his skin, landing on the shiny metallic floor with a series of sizzling plops.

And then suddenly, the pain from the burns was gone, but the pain of the memory tore through him again. Tears streaked down his face as he whimpered and shook.

"Oops! That wasn't actually…I mean, that wasn't my third one. I just used water because the wood was on fire. That doesn't count…right?" Lissa looked at the professor with wide eyes. He looked angry.

"No, it doesn't count," he snapped. "Get it right this time."

Lissa looked much less confident as she fingered the materia, glancing up at Cloud with each one, as if she expected him to react by what she felt. He was still trembling, naked and wet, missing a significant portion of his body hair, anticipating how horrible the last one would be. He didn't know how much more he could take. "Umm, professor?" she said meekly. "Should I try this?" She held out the green orb in her hand. It was large, definitely mastered.

Hojo looked at the materia angrily. "What? I don't use that garbage! Tell me what it is!"

Lissa looked offended. "It's ultima," she whispered, but not quiet enough.

Cloud jerked against his restraints. Mastered ultima, in the hands of such a powerful mage, would most definitely kill him. It would kill him several times over, in fact.

Hojo looked at him speculatively. "Ultima?" He said, loud enough for Cloud's benefit. "Can you keep it from hitting us?"

Lissa nodded eagerly. "I can contain it to a smaller area."

Cloud struggled harder. "P-professor. That can't…I won't…"

Hojo turned back to Lissa. "Fine. But I'm going up to the observation deck, just in case."

"Lissa…" Cloud appealed to her as the professor left the room. "Lissa, come on, you're not a murderer."

Lissa smiled serenely. "Of course I'm not." Cloud's heart slowed down, just a bit, but it was short-lived. "I'm just doing what the professor says to do, so really, he's the murderer," she said cheerfully.

"What? N-no! Lissa don't—"

That was all he got to say. The world exploded.

* * *

When Cloud opened his eyes, he didn't know what he expected. Maybe it was his mom, glowing and healthy, with the smell of his favorite foods wafting from the kitchen. Maybe Tifa, ready to pick up where they left off in his dreams.

For a moment, he was confused by the pretty girl smiling at him. Then everything came rushing back, and Cloud flinched against the harsh wood at his back. Lissa stood behind the cart of materia, her hands resting on either side of the array of materia. "What—Lissa? Did you—"

"Damn it, Lissa, get up here _now_." The cold voice of Professor Hojo came over the speakers, and the girl visibly wilted. Cloud watched her walk back out through the sleek metallic doors, leaving him on his rough wooden X.

 _What happened? Am I dead?_ His mind raced. _She didn't respond to me. Did she see me? Or hear me? But I'm not in the lifestream…I must be in between. Is this how it works? I just have to sit here and wait—_

The door slid open again, and Dr. Hyde walked in, looking smug. He looked right at the wooden X holding Cloud's body, smiling broadly. "Well, S-16, what did you think? Was that absolutely horrible? Did you try everything you could to escape your bindings?"

Cloud blinked. Hyde was talking to him? "I…yes…" he said hesitantly.

"Good," Hyde said, looking satisfied. "We're going to try something a bit different now."

The door opened again, this time admitting the big red-haired man with Zack thrown carelessly over his shoulder. He looked like he'd gotten to try out the Wippy glove, too.

"What…what's going on?" Cloud fumbled. "Why is he here?" He watched as Gage plopped his burden down on the opposite side of the room, pausing just long enough to remove Zack's scrub top before enclosing his limp patient's wrists in the steel cuffs chained to the wall. He leaned Zack's back against the wall and began attaching little electrodes to his chest. A few moments later, Zack began his struggle for air, wheezing loudly to pull in those first, painful breaths.

It was hard for Cloud to watch. "Why is he here?" he repeated, louder. "Why are you doing this?"

No one answered. Gage clipped leads onto the electrodes. Instantly, a panel above Zack's head slid to the side, revealing an inset monitor. A jagged line started running across the screen. It was the familiar pattern of a heart beat in electronic view. Several other numbers ran across the top, some of which Cloud recognized – heart rate and blood pressure, but also some more he didn't know.

Zack finally got his feet under him and took in the surrounding room. His restraints were at a height that allowed him to sit or stand, but Zack never sat down if he could help it. "Cloud? What's going on? Are you ok?"

"I'm ok," Cloud said. He was getting a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. From Hojo, he expected pain and torment. His previous octo-room sessions made that clear. But what would Dr. Hyde do?

The doctor cleared his throat importantly. "When a candidate is first accepted into the SOLDIER program, he undergoes a special surgery. Much of this surgery is to strengthen certain weaknesses in the human body, and the initial introduction of mako is carefully monitored. This also helps to strengthen the body."

"We already know all this, Hyde," Zack says irritably. "Just tell us what we're doing here."

Dr. Hyde shot a sour glance in his direction, then continued as if there had been no interruption. "But there is another part of this surgery that is done as a safeguard. You see, when creating super-human soldiers, we need to make sure that we have a way to control them, in case they get out of hand. It's a kill switch, in the most literal sense of the word."

"Really?" Zack asked, incredulous. "Then why the hell didn't you geniuses use it on Sephiroth?"

"Zack," Cloud said quietly, shaking his head at him. The bad feeling was getting worse.

Hyde pulled a small device from his pocket and began tapping on a touch screen. Across the room, the monotone beeping sped up.

"Hyde, stop," Cloud said loudly. "Just tell me what you want from me. This isn't the way to convince me…"

"What's going on? What are you doing to me?" Zack demanded. The beeping got faster. Zack was breathing harder. "What the fuck are you doing to me?" His face was turning red. Sweat trickled down the side of his face.

"Doctor Hyde!" Cloud said desperately, watching the number on the monitor rising. 200. 210. 220. "Stop! I'll do whatever you want, just stop!"

Zack was beyond yelling. He dropped to his knees, his breathing fast and shallow.

230\. 240. 250. Cloud bucked against the wood. The leather creaked. "I will fucking kill you, Hyde!" he screamed. "Turn it off, now!" The beeping rose to a shrill beat. "ZACK!" The wood splintered at his back. Cloud threw his upper body forward with all his strength, pulling his arms forward. The wood snapped at the weak point in the center. He braced his hand against the splintered wood from the bottom of the X and pulled his leg forward. The leather snapped and tore. He pulled his leg free, then quickly ripped off the other pieces.

He looked up to see Dr. Hyde, his mouth in a comically wide O. Cloud didn't think. He just reacted. He charged toward the doctor like a bull, head tucked down. The cart full of materia was between the two of them. He snatched one as he ran by, then dove at Hyde, ramming into the doctor's gut with his shoulder. They went flying together, hitting the sleek metalic floor and sliding almost all the way to where Zack hung by his wrists, his eyes barely open.

Cloud had never wished so hard for someone to die. He leapt back onto the doctor, wrapping his hands around his neck, slamming his head against the ground. The shrill beeping of Zack's heart rate reverberated in Cloud's bones. "Make it stop, Hyde. Now!"

"The…the remote. I can't reach it." He waved his hand weakly in the general direction of his pocket, which Cloud was blocking with his knees. Cloud moved his knee and reached into the pocket of Hyde's lab coat, grabbing the remote himself. He scanned frantically over the display. It was a complicated interface; he would never be able to figure it out fast enough.

He shoved it into Hyde's hand and stood up. "Fix it, Hyde." Dr. Hyde sat up unsteadily. Cloud hoped he hadn't slammed his head against the ground too hard, but he didn't have time to coddle the man. He squeezed the stone in his hand and channeled his focus. A bolt of lightning snapped, inches from the hand supporting Hyde on the ground.

Dr. Hyde yelped, pulling up his hand, and stared up at Cloud. "Hurry up, Hyde. I _will_ kill you," Cloud said savagely.

"Ok, ok! I'm stopping it! Just need to…" he pressed several buttons on the screen while Cloud's eyes flickered between Hyde and the numbers on the monitor. Finally, they started going down.

Zack's eyelids fluttered. "C…c…"

Cloud's heart was in his throat. "Zack?" He ran to his friend's side and knelt down. "How do you feel? Are you—" Then there was a prick on his neck, and his muscles turned to putty. He slumped down to the ground next to Zack. His hand opened, and the materia, his only weapon, rolled from his fist.

 _Stupid, stupid, stupid!_ Cloud berated himself. _How could you turn your back on him after that?_

But he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder and heard Dr. Hyde's voice. "Well done, Cloud."

 _I did it? Whatever he wanted me to do…what was it? Save Zack? Threaten to kill Hyde? Break my bonds?_ And then, an absurd thought under the circumstances: _Wait a minute. He knows my name?_

* * *

Cloud sat up in bed, his legs crossed in front of him. With his wrists awkwardly restrained by the chains, it was the closest thing to comfortably sitting up that he could manage. Zack leaned against the wall between his shackles.

For once, they had nothing to say to each other. They were both reliving the afternoon that they almost didn't live through.

"Cloud." Zack finally spoke, uncharacteristically quiet. "We have to get out."

Cloud looked up, but said nothing.

"We mean nothing to them. They'd just as soon kill us as do…whatever they're trying to do." Still, Cloud just stared. "Come on, say something, man. I need you to help me plan this. I can't do it alone."

Cloud's stomach lurched. "Yeah, I guess you figured that out last time," he said bitterly.

"Yeah," Zack said, sighing.

Cloud tried to rub his eyes and was abruptly reminded, once again, of his shackles. Zack was still showing no remorse for trying to leave him behind, which only proved that he didn't think he did anything wrong. In his mind, there was no betrayal. More importantly, things had changed. Cloud had always known that he was little more than a number to Hyde and Hojo. Hell, today was the first time they'd even bothered to use his name, and they toyed with him for months. But Zack…he was supposed to be the one they were banking everything on. He was the golden child.

Cloud didn't know what had changed, but the rules were different. They had to stick together if they were going to make it out of this place alive, and staying mad at Zack would only divide them. He sighed. It seemed impossible, but they had to try. "All right. The first thing we have to deal with is that kill switch. Even if we manage to escape, they'll just kill you as soon as they realize we're gone."

Zack stared at him, wide-eyed. "Not just me, Cloud. Us."

"Zack, you _know_ I never made SOLDIER. They didn't do that surgery on me."

"Yeah? Well you were unconscious for weeks before you were brought here. Are you willing to bet your life they didn't implant a kill switch during that time?"

"Oh." Cloud frowned. "Maybe. If they thought I was worth the expense."

"Their _secrets_ are worth the expense," Zack said bitterly.

Cloud shrugged, conceding the point. It was quite possible that he could be killed the same way. "So what are we supposed to do about it? Any idea where it is? Can we dig it out?"

"It…made my heart race. Do you think it's right on my heart?"

Cloud shook his head. "Maybe, but I doubt it. A stimulant released anywhere in your blood would be enough to do it. They wouldn't have to mess with that kind of surgery. Do you remember anything from when you woke up after your surgery? Any places you were sore or stitched up?"

Zack leaned his head against the wall. "Not that I remember. I really just thought they knocked us out so they could monitor the first mako injection."

Cloud swore. "Ok. We'll have to try to figure something out. Maybe one of the orderlies can get us some more information. I mean, Jax seems to like you, and Wendy…" he trailed off.

Zack looked guilty. "I feel bad about that, man. I didn't know it was her."

"Well, anyway. Maybe we can get something out of them without making it obvious that we're trying to find out how to get around it. Think you can do that?"

"Of course," Zack said, his familiar cocky grin surfacing. "I can charm the pants off a nun."

Cloud burst out laughing. It felt good to laugh after so long. "We don't need Jax's pants off, just…get him to talk."

"Yeah, ok. But you know, it's been a really long dry spell for me…"

"Zack!"

Zack shrugged, tossing his head. "Hey, you know, shit happens…"

Cloud rolled his eyes. "Only to you, Zack. Anyway…"

"He does have a pretty nice ass, you know."

"Uh, no, actually I don't know," Cloud said pointedly.

"Come on, I've seen you eyeing that ass!" Zack prodded.

"Can we please stop talking about Jax's ass now?"

Zack cackled madly. "Hell no, not now! I haven't seen your face so red since…well, since we talked about Lola!"

As easily as Zack talked about sex, Cloud was still too shy to say the words himself. He grew up in a culture where people barely mentioned sex, let alone educated children about it. Cloud was clueless when he first arrived in Midgar. It was an endless source of amusement for Zack. "Gods, you are so immature!" Cloud said, willing his face to stop burning.

Zack just laughed harder. " _I'm_ immature? You can't even _think_ about sex without getting embarrassed. How do you even get through it? Do you stutter and apologize the whole time?!"

Cloud reached behind him for his pillow and hurled it at Zack. At least, he tried. His movement was aborted with a loud clank of metal, and the pillow plopped to the ground between their beds.

Just like that, the mood was dead. But that was the power of Zack Fair. Even if only for a few minutes, he could make you forget that you were being held hostage by an unstable scientist. He could make you forget that life as you knew it was over.

It was over.

* * *

Zack laid on his side, watching his roommate toss and turn without a pillow. Neither of them were able to reach it from their beds, so it laid there between them like a lump of roadkill. He wished it hadn't ended like that. It had been so long since he'd seen the kid smile, and he'd tried to draw it out as long as possible.

It wasn't nearly long enough.

He needed this quiet time, though. Unlike Cloud, whose mind was always going, processing and understanding everything instantly, Zack needed time to think and draw conclusions. And the conclusions he was drawing were not good.

Conclusion number one: They were messing with Cloud's head.

Before they'd tried to escape, Dr. Hyde had made it clear that Cloud was expendable. He was nothing more than a playmate for Zack, and if he and his friend couldn't play nicely, he would be sent away. Permanently.

But as long as he stayed around, they were getting their rocks off on seeing how many different ways they could fuck with him. Zack was pretty sure by now that Cloud had been telling the truth about everything. They had been withholding food and running him ragged. They had been taunting him with the prospect of food and then making him violently ill. They had been pumping him full of mako, more concentrated then they would ever allow to touch their SOLDIERS, and it hurt like hell.

Conclusion number two: They were being played against each other.

It wasn't enough to make Cloud suffer. They had to make him believe he was going crazy. They had to make Zack lose faith in him. They had to make them fight over petty things, so that they couldn't rely on the only person they should have been able to count on: each other.

And today, there was something new. They'd wanted Cloud to see what they were doing to Zack. They'd wanted Zack to see the condition Cloud was in. They wanted to know how else they could bend their prisoners to their will.

Conclusion number three: They were fucked.

Well and truly fucked. They could be killed at any moment, for any reason, and there wasn't a damn thing they could do to stop it. Even if they knew where this mysterious "kill switch" was buried, did they really want to mess with it? What if they just touched the wrong wire and killed themselves? Or each other?

Even better, the people in charge of the switch seemed to be just itching to throw it. He had no idea what the hell they were doing to Cloud when he went into the octo-room, and he was pretty sure that he himself had fallen into the expendable category. Oh, and those blue gloves. They could turn Cloud and Zack into lifeless puddles on the floor with a single touch. They could make them do anything they wanted.

Yep. Fucked.

* * *

"Hey, how come your pillow is on the floor?" Jax asked.

"Oh," Cloud said. "I tried to throw it, but you know—" he pulled his arm up, rattling the cuffs against the bars of the railings.

Jax blinked rapidly, like he didn't know quite what to say. "Right. Well, let me get that for you." He picked up the pillow and tucked it back behind Cloud's back.

"Thanks," Cloud said quietly.

"No problem," Jax said lightly. "Well, I brought you some breakfast. Seems like you're both on the same schedule now, at least."

"Which one is mine?" Cloud asked.

"Uh, whichever one you want," Jax responded. "There's no allergy tags with this one."

"Allergy tags?" Zack asked, eyebrows raised.

"Yeah. You know, because of Cloud's allergies. I had to keep them separate, because they prepared Cloud's without the stuff he was allergic to." He looked at Cloud seriously. "Man, it must suck to have so many allergies."

Zack scoffed loudly. They both knew Cloud didn't have any. "Just give him whichever one has more food. He hasn't eaten in a while."

Jax scratched his head. "Uh, I think they're pretty even…"

Cloud smiled faintly at Zack. He got the message. "Just give me that one," he said, pointing to the closer tray. He actually thought that there might have been some nutrition in those infusions after all, because he had felt stronger after they were finished. He'd been half delirious with pain through the whole cycle, so eating normally was out of the question anyway.

Jax rolled the trays over each of their beds. It was the only place they were able to eat anymore, since they could no longer move around the room freely. It was maybe slightly less appetizing with the stench from the waste pails under their beds, but neither of them were complaining.

"Hey Jax, did you ever have any trouble with those kill switch things?" Zack asked casually.

Jax finished setting up their plates and stepped back, scratching his head. "Kill switch things?"

"Yeah. You know, those surgical things they put in all their employees, just in case someone Sephiroths?"

Cloud paled visibly, but Jax just looked confused. "Sephiroths?"

"Yeah." Zack glanced guiltily over at Cloud. Too soon to joke about that. "You know, just in case we go crazy and they need to cut the power on us? I've been hearing rumors about people having uh…allergic reactions to them and stuff. Any of the people you work with having those problems?"

Jax took a step back. "I don't know what you're talking about. They don't put anything like that into us."

"Sure they do," Zack said casually, cutting into his sausage. "You probably just don't remember it. The anesthesia they use for the surgery kind of messes with your memory. But you have to agree to it before they'll hire you. It's mandatory." He popped a slice of the sausage into his mouth.

Jax just stared at him. "Oh. Well…I don't know. I haven't heard of anyone having…problems like that…"

"Ah," Zack said with a shrug. "Probably just one of those stupid rumors some bored cadet came up with."

"Sure. Heh." Jax laughed uncomfortably. "Well, you guys need anything else?"

"Nah, we're good. Thanks, man," Zack said.

Jax smiled and left the room quickly. They listened to his footsteps fading down the hall.

"You think he bought it?" Cloud asked.

Zack grinned. "I guarantee you he's going to spend the afternoon trying to dig up information on those kill switches." His smile faded as he looked over at Cloud. "How's the food going down?"

Cloud shrugged. "Seems ok so far. It's just…I don't really even have an appetite anymore. It's weird." He set down his fork, grimacing. "I don't think I can eat anymore."

"You have to try," Zack urged. "I mean, assuming it's not gonna make you sick, you really need it."

Cloud picked up his fork and pushed some eggs around his plate. "Do you really think it matters?"

"Stop that," Zack ordered sternly. "That kind of attitude is unacceptable here."

"Really?" Cloud asked dully, slouching on the bed. "Are you going to demote me? Because I'm not sure what's lower than this."

"Once we get out of here, hell yes, I will! I'm still your CO."

Cloud sat up, his eyes burning with a green light. "Get out of here? We're not _getting out of here_ , Zack. Ever." He ticked off the obstacles on his fingers. "We have no idea about the layout of the building. We have no idea what other security measures they have in place. We don't know the number or skill level of the guards. Even if we somehow figure all of that out, they'd just throw the instant death switch to keep their secrets!"

"Cloud, you can't—"

"No, you know what we have to look forward to, _Commander_?" Cloud's face contorted cruelly. "We get to see which crumbles first – our health or our sanity. Hey, maybe if we're lucky, we'll live long enough to experience _years_ of torture before we die a painful death! Fuck this, Zack. I'd rather die now and get it over with." Shoving away his rolling tray, Cloud flopped down on the bed and turned away from his roommate.

Zack swallowed hard, looking at his friend's back. Somehow, the idea of his own death didn't bother him. Maybe it didn't seem real. SOLDIERs were practically invincible, weren't they? But the idea of Cloud dying was all too real.

 _Zack clung to consciousness with all his might, trying to raise his head from the cold metal stairs, slick with his blood. The sound of Sephiroth's slow, staggering footsteps had pulled him from darkness. He was holding something with long, gray hair, disturbingly similar to his own._

 _Zack focused on his own bracer. He had to heal himself. He had to finish this._

 _But the materia barely flickered. He had used the last of his mana healing the townspeople that he pulled from the burning houses. Truthfully, he never bothered to develop his magic skills as much as he should have. He relied on his strength far too much. Zack let his head drop back down onto his arm. Without that, there was no way he was in any condition to continue the fight._

 _"How dare you." Sephiroth's voice was cold with anger._

How dare I what? Attack him? Didn't we already have this conversation? He torched a fucking town! He killed all those people!

 _But Sephiroth wasn't looking at him. His cat-like eyes were focused behind Zack, at the bottom of the stairs. Zack turned his head, painfully. It was…it was Cloud! He was cradling Tifa's limp head in his arms. The buster sword laid next to him on the ground, the top half coated with blood. He looked back up at Sephiroth, at the dark red trickling through the fingers clutching his side._

 _His mind felt like mush, moving absurdly slow, but he managed to connect the dots. Cloud must have stabbed Sephiroth. The general was injured and limping. He was weakened! This could be their only chance._

 _"Cloud. Finish…Sephiroth…off," he managed to grunt._

 _Determination spreading across his features, Cloud nodded and gently laid Tifa's still head back on the ground. If she was still alive, she wouldn't be for long. He would want vengeance for her death. Maybe it would be enough to drive him to finish what he started._

 _Cloud picked up the buster sword at his side and walked to the bottom of the stairs while Sephiroth waited patiently for his challenger. "SEPHIROTH!" Cloud screamed and leapt into the air, his sword in perfect position. But Sephiroth wasn't as injured as he appeared. He flicked his wrist up, blocking Cloud with the Masamune. The force of the defensive strike threw Cloud into the Jenova room. Zack heard him hit the floor and roll. Slowly, Sephiroth turned and followed him._

 _Shit. Shit! No! Pushing himself up with shaking arms, Zack made it about halfway up before he wobbled and collapsed. Too much of his mako-infused blood had been spilled, making his accererated healing almost nil. "Come on, Cloud, get up!" he begged softly._

 _He blacked out again. When he woke, it was to the sound of staggering footsteps. Zack struggled to lift his head. Relief flooded over him when he saw Cloud stumbling out of the Jenova room, but it was almost immediately squashed. Cloud managed to stay on his feet long enough to reach the top of the stairs, then he hit his knees and slid down, face-first, almost reaching the place where Zack laid._

 _The blood was horrendous. It gushed out of him with every heartbeat like a high-powered squirt gun. It puddled beneath him and ran down the stairs in a bloody river. Cloud's eyes were closed, but he was still breathing._

 _Zack swallowed back the horror. If Cloud was going to die, he should die knowing that he was a hero. "Cloud…you did it…" He stretched his arm toward his friend, trying to make contact one last time, but fell short._

Even now, knowing that Cloud had been saved in time – if one could call this being _saved_ – the memory made his gut lurch. Even after the octo-room, after the too-fast hammering of his heart and the knowledge of the kill switch, the impression remained: I am invincible. Cloud is fragile.

Zack looked at his roommate one last time as he pushed away his empty tray. In his heart, he made a solemn vow: _I will get Cloud out of this place alive. No matter what else happens, he will live on._


End file.
